Twilight Yullen
by Neko Serena
Summary: About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Kanda was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him-and I didn't know how dominant that part might be-that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello Yaoi Fan-girls all over the world! My name is Neko Serena and this is the first story I'm uploading on .(Cause I have other stories , I just haven't gotten around to uploading them.) This will be a cross-over between Man and the Twilight Saga. This story will be pretty much based of the Twilight book with some alterations. Just give it a try OK?**

**Oh, and for those that DON'T like Twilight do not fret for I have other stories that are not related to twilight at all that I plan to update once school is over(which is tomorrow, Yay me!)**

**Well this will be yaoi if you haven't guessed yet and it will be staring my favorite yaoi couple Allen and Kanda! Yullen love people! (Starts dancing around in circles.)**

**Allen: "Umm, isn't it time to start the story yet-"(gets cut off as the authoress glomps him)**

**Neko Serena: " Allen you're here! Yay"(Starts dancing around with Allen in her arms till a sword pointed at her neck stops her. Authoress look behind to the menacing aura behind her to see Kanda!)**

**Kanda: " Let go of the Moyashi and tell me one reason I should not slice you with Muggen for pairing me up with the Moyashi in this crazy yaoi stories?"**

**Neko Serena: (Lets go of Allen and hides behind his back) Allen-Chan, Kanda is being mean to me!"**

**Allen: " My name is Allen! Kanda stop being mean to the authoress before you scare her away like the rest! Seriously, whats wrong with her writing yaoi stories?"**

**Kanda and Neko Serena: ( Both are looking at Allen with shocked looks on their faces, though Kanda is more angry while the authoress is more elated) Are you serious?**

**Allen: " Yea, why wouldn't I be?" (He tilts his head in confusion, only to have the authoress glomp him again)**

**Neko Serena: KAWAII! I'm so proud you've accepted your relationship with Kanda! (turns to see Kanda) "You should follow his example!"**

**Kanda: "But-"**

**Allen: " Yea Kanda, just because WE don't know what yaoi means doesn't mean you should hurt the authoress." (he says while looking proud of himself for acting more mature that Kanda, while the authoress and Kanda both look at him with a Are-You-Kidding-Me? Look)**

**Allen: "Why are you both looking at me that way? Do I have something on my face?"**

**Neko Serena: "Well his naivety is part of his charm...i guess. Kanda can you do the disclaimer I feel too let down."**

**Kanda: " Che, whatever. Neko Serena does NOT own Man or Twilight. They belong to Katsura Hoshino and Stephenie Meyer."**

**Allen: " Enjoy the yaoi story, whatever that is!" ( Authoress starts crying in the corner)**

* * *

**Preface**

_I'd never given much thought to how I would die-though I'd had reason enough in the last few months-but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this._

_I stared without breathing across the long room, into the dark eyes of the hunter, and he looked pleasantly back at me._

_Surely it was a good way to die, in the place of someone else, someone I loved. Noble, even. That ought to count for something._

_I knew that if I'd never gone to Forks, I wouldn't be facing death now. But, terrified as I was, I couldn't bring myself to regret the decision. When life offers you a dream so far beyond any of your expectations, it's not reasonable to grieve when it comes to an end._

_The hunter smiled in a friendly way as he sauntered forward to kill me._

* * *

Well that is the preface straight out of Twilight. Nothing I could do to change it really but the changes starts next chapter. Not big changes really, but still changes.

I don't really expect you to review this cause its really nothing but future reviews are welcomed.

Can you guess who are Charlie and Renee in this story? If you can I'll give you a cookie!

I'll try to update tomorrow, if not then at the latest Tuesday. Recently my laptop stopped working TT^TT and I'm forced to use the big computer in the living room, and since my family has no clue I write yaoi stories you can pretty much guess what would happen if they found out. So updates might be rare for a while sometimes but I promise not to make them too long in between each chapter.

Adios~! ( Yes I'm Spanish)


	2. Chapter 2

**Neko Serena****: "****Hello again! Here is the next awaited chapter of****T**_**wilight Yullen! **_**Yay!"(****Throws**** confetti in the air)**

**Allen: "Yay, next chapter!" (Assists the authoress in throwing confetti)**

**Kanda: "Che, you two are too loud Baka Moyashi, Baka Neko!"**

**Allen: "My name is Allen!"(Pouts at Kanda)**

**Neko Serena: "And I'm not stupid!...but you can call me Neko for short. Writing Neko Serena and Authoress all the time is too long and annoying."**

**Allen: "But it's your name."**

**Neko: "Can't I have a nickname?"**

**Kanda: "It's not really a nickname if it's part of your name that makes up one word all on its own."**

**Neko: "Well whatever, just call me Neko for short."**

**Kanda: "Che, whatever Baka Neko." (Smirks)**

**Neko: "He won't stop calling me baka will he?" (Turns to Allen)**

**Allen: "Probably not, but I won't stop till he calls me by my name!"**

**Kanda: "Not likely Moyashi"**

**Allen: ****"My**** name is Allen! ****A-L-L-E-N!"**

**Kanda: " Moyashi, M-O-Y-A-S-H-I!"**

**Neko: " Will you two stop it? Your acting like an old couple!"**

**Allen and Kanda: "!" (They turn away from each others to look at Neko with glares, well Kanda is glaring but Allen looks more like he's pouting.)**

**Neko: " Well the old couple aside...for now...i would like to thank 0x0 for being the first to review my story! Really thank you, you have no idea how happy you made me! Thanks for the tips as well! As for who are Charlie and Renée in the story, well just continue reading and find out!**

**Allen: "Neko does NOT own Man or Twilight in any shape or form"**

**Neko: TT^TT**

* * *

**1. ****First Sight**

My father drove me to the airport with the windows rolled down. It was seventy-five degrees in England, the sky was a perfect, cloudless blue. I like to think of it as a last parting gift of my homeland of London, England. I was wearing my favorite outfit - a white dress shirt, matching black dress pants and vest, a pair of black oxford shoes, a pair of white gloves and my trade mark red ribbon tied to my neck; I was wearing it as a final farewell gesture to my beloved England. My carry-on item was briefcase filled with essentials and a parka, for when I arrived to my destination.

In the Olympic Peninsula of the northwest Washington State of the USA, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds. It rains on this inconsequential town more than any other place in the United States of America. Not that rain really bothers me; it's just that I'm more used to the constant change of weather in a normal London day or week. I enjoy the constant change because you never know what you're will get, but in the small town of Forks where the only thing it seems to do most if not all the time is rain, I find it somewhat depressing. It is from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that my father escaped with me when I was only a few months old. It was in this town that I'd been compelled to spend a month every summer until I was fourteen. That was the year I finally put my foot down; these past three summers, my dad or Master as he likes me to call him, Cross, vacationed with me in New York for two weeks instead. Well I say vacationed but really I worked to help pay off some of Cross' debts, and no he didn't force me to if that's what you are thinking.

It was to Forks that I now exiled myself - an action that I took with great horror. I detested Forks.

I loved London. I loved the constant changing weather and activity there was there. I loved the vigorous, sprawling city.

"Allen," my father said to me - the last of a thousand times - before I got on the plane. "You don't have to do this."

My father's name was Mana Walker, well Mana Anderson Walker now since he got married to Phil Anderson*. Mana was 5.8 feet tall, had short brown hair, and wore an ever constant smile; a habit from his days as a circus clown. He is my foster father along with Cross, they adopted me when I was 8, that was a year before their marriage. I felt a spasm of panic as I stared at his wide, childlike eyes. How could I leave my loving, erratic, hare-brained father to fend for himself? Of course he had Phil now, so the bills would probably get paid, there would be food in the refrigerator, gas in his car, and someone to call when he got lost, but still...

"I _want _to go," I lied. I'd always been a good liar, hiding behind a poker face when the moment called for it, like now. Of course this wasn't always effective against Mana or Cross because they were the once that raised me so they know many of my habits, but I'd been saying this lie so frequently lately that it sounded almost convincing to them now.

"Tell Cross I said hi."

"I will."

"I'll see you soon," he insisted. "You can come home whenever you want - I'll come right back as soon as you need me."

But I could see the sacrifice in his eyes behind the promise.

"Don't worry about me," I urged. "It'll be great. I love you, Papa Mana."

He hugged me tightly for a minute, and then I got on the plane, and he was gone.

It's an eleven-hour flight from London to Seattle, another hour in a small plane up to Port Angeles, and then an hour drive back down to Forks. Flying doesn't bother me; the hour in the car with Cross, though, I was a little worried about.

Cross had really been fairly nice about the whole thing, surprisingly. He seemed genuinely pleased that I was coming to live with him for the first time with any degree of permanence. He'd already gotten me registered for high school and was going to actually _help _me get a car.

But it was sure to be awkward with Cross. He wasn't what anyone would call verbose, and even if I was, I wouldn't know what to say to him regardless. I knew he was more than a little confused by my decision - like Mana before me; I hadn't made a secret of my distaste for Forks.

When I landed in Port Angeles, it was raining. I didn't see it as an omen - just unavoidable. I'd already said my goodbyes to the sun.

Cross was waiting for me with the cruiser. This I was expecting, too. Cross is Police Chief Marian to the good people of Forks. My primary motivation behind buying a car, despite the scarcity of my funds, was that I refused to be driven around town in a car with red and blue lights on top. Nothing slows down traffic like a cop. Plus, I didn't want to drag more attention to myself than I would probably already get.

Cross gave me an awkward, one-armed hug when I stumbled my way off the plane.

"It's good to see you again, idiot Apprentice," he said, smirking as he automatically caught and steadied me. "You haven't changed much, still the same clumsy idiot Apprentice. How's Mana?"

"Papa's fine. It's good to see you, too, Master." I wasn't allowed to call him Cross to his face, and we established nicknames already when I was small. They may be a little weird and hard to explain to other people but it was how we got along in some small way. The idiot part was added later, to my dislike, due to the fact that I could not read or write when Mana and Cross adopted me. In my defense, I was living in the streets when they adopted me so how was I going to get any kind of an education there? Still I knew he meant no harm when he called me that, so I just let it go. I knew it was his way of showing affection.

I had only a few bags. Despite the fact that it rained often in England most of my clothes were too permeable for Washington. Mana and I had pooled our resources at the last minute to supplement my winter wardrobe, but it was still scanty. It all fit easily into the trunk of the cruiser.

"I found a good car for you, really cheap," he announced when we were strapped in.

"What kind of car?" I was suspicious of the way he said "good car for _you__" _as opposed to just "good car," after all you never knew with Cross.

"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy."

"Where did you find it?"

"Do you remember Bookman down at La Push?" La Push is the tiny Indian reservation on the coast.

"No."

"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Cross prompted.

That would explain why I didn't remember him. I do a good job of blocking painful, unnecessary things from my memory. With the past that I had it was a skill I was very grateful for.

"He's in a wheelchair now," Cross continued when I didn't respond, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."

"What year is it?" I could see from his change of expression that this was the question he was hoping I wouldn't ask.

"Well, Bookman's done a lot of work on the engine - it's only a few years old, really."

I hoped he didn't think so little as to actually believe that I would fall to such a blatant lie, he was the one, after all, that taught me how to see when people where being dishonest. That skill helped a lot in winning games of poker in clubs to win money. But that is something else all together, so back to the matter at hand. "When did he buy it?"

"He bought it in 1984, I think."

"Did he buy it new?"

"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties - or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted begrudgingly.

Sigh, I knew it. Cross never changes. How is car that is at least 50 years old, "_only a few years old"_?

"Cr-Master, I don't really know anything about cars. I wouldn't be able to fix it if anything went wrong, and I couldn't afford a mechanic..." Especially with the bills you will probably lay on me the minute we get to Forks, but I left that part out.

"Don't worry about it, idiot Apprentice, the thing runs great. They sure as hell don't build them like that anymore."

_The thing_, I thought to myself...it had possibilities-as a nickname, at the very least.

"How cheap is cheap?" After all, that was the part I couldn't compromise on.

"Well, Apprentice, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift or something..." Cross peeked sideways at me with a slight hopeful expression.

Wow. Free. For Cross to do something like **that** he must have really been worried about me...or so drunk he didn't know what he was doing. But seeing as he didn't return it afterward I guess it was a safe bet to assume he was sober when he bought it for me.

"You didn't need to do that, Master. I was going to buy myself a car."

"I really don't mind. I want you to at least be happy here." He was looking ahead at the road when he said this. Cross wasn't comfortable with expressing his emotions out loud. I somewhat inherited that from him, I could show my emotions to people but most of the time I rather hide behind my poker face, which was my trade mark smile. But I knew Cross would probably be able to see past that so I was looking straight ahead as I responded.

"That's really nice, Master. Thanks. I really appreciate it." No need to add that my being happy in Forks is an impossibility. He didn't need to suffer along with me. And I never looked a free truck in the mouth - or engine. Especially not if it came from Cross, because who knew when he would ever do this again? Might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

"Well, now, you're welcome idiot Apprentice," he mumbled, probably embarrassed to show such a sign of affection towards me.

We exchanged a few more comments on the weather, which was wet, and that was pretty much it for the conversation. We stared out the windows in silence.

It was beautiful, of course; I couldn't deny that. Everything was green: the tress, their trunks covered with moss, their branches hanging with a canopy of it, the ground covered in ferns. Even the air filtered down greenly through the leaves.

It was too green - an alien planet.

Eventually we made it to Cross'. He still lived in the small, two-bedroom house that he'd bought with Mana in the early days of their marriage. Those were the only kind of days their marriage had - the early ones. There, parked on the street in front of the house that never changed, was my new - well, new to me - truck. It was a faded red color, with big, rounded fenders and a bulbous cab. To my intense surprise, I loved it. I didn't really know if it would run, but I could see myself in it. Plus, it was one of those solid iron affairs that never gets damaged – the kind you see at the scene of an accident, paint unscratched, surrounded by the pieces of the foreign car it had destroyed.

"Wow, Master, I love it! Thanks!" Now my horrific day tomorrow would be just that much less dreadful. I wouldn't be faced with the choice of either walking two miles in the rain to school or accepting a ride in the Chief's cruiser.

"Glad you like it," Cross said gruffly, embarrassed again.

It took only one trip to get all my stuff upstairs. I got the west bedroom that faced out over the front yard. The room was familiar; it had belonged to me since the day Mana and Cross adopted me. The wooden floor, the light blue walls, the peaked ceiling, the white laced curtains around the window – these were all part of my childhood with my new parents. The only changes Cross had made were switching the kiddy-bed for a full bed and adding a desk as I grew. The desk now held a second-hand computer, with the phone line for the modem stapled along the floor to the nearest phone jack. This was a stipulation from Mana, so that we could stay in touch easily. A rocking chair from my child days was still in the corner.

There was only one small bathroom at the top of the stairs, which I would have to share with Cross. I was trying not to dwell too much on that fact.

One of the good things about Cross is he doesn't hover. He left me alone to unpack and get settled, a feat that would have been altogether impossible for Mana. It was nice to be alone, not to have to smile and look pleased; a relief to stare dejectedly out the window at the sheeting rain and let just a few tears escape. I wasn't going to go on a real crying jag, that was for girls. Though I unwillingly might when I go to bed that night, when I would have to think about the coming morning.

Forks High School had a frightening total of only three hundred and fifty-seven – now fifty-eight – students; there were more than seven hundred people in my junior class alone back home. All of the kids had grown up together – their grandparents had been toddlers together. I would be the weird new kid from the big city in a far of country, a curiosity, a freak.

Maybe, if I looked like a boy from England should, I could work this to my advantage. But physically, I'd never fit in anywhere. Besides I didn't even know where nor to whom I was born from so how would I know how those of my nationality looked like? And even if by some strange miracle I did know, it still wouldn't help because I didn't even _look_like a normal human being!

I was ivory-skinned, without the excuse of blue eyes or red hair that it was usually paired up with. No, my hair was white like an old man's; my eyes were a gray color that matched the clouds before a big thunderstorm. My body was slender, but soft like a girl's, obviously not an athlete; I didn't have the hand-eye coordination to play sports without humiliating myself – and harming both myself and anyone who stood too close. Yet somehow I could perform all the circus tricks Mana had taught to near perfection, how that was even possible I will never know. And to finish it all off was my red, bumpy, deformed left arm. It was deducted to be a birth defect since the skin didn't have the properties that would indicate it was burnt. No, it was a birth defect, probably the reason my birth parent abandoned me when I was a baby, as well as the white hair. The top of my deformed left hand had a green cross shaped jewel imbedded in it. Whether I was born with it or someone sick forcefully imbedded it to my hand when I was a baby is unknown, but whatever the case I was stuck with it. Apparently some arteries in my hand were wrapped around it from within which made it too dangerous to surgically remove it, leaving the only safe option to just ignore it and live with it. It didn't matter really because it didn't even feel like it was there and what difference would it make to have some strange jewel stuck to my hand? I was already a freak to begin with. (He still doesn't have the scar on his face, that comes later.)

When I finished putting my clothes in the old pine dresser, I took my bag of bathroom necessities and went to the communal bathroom to clean myself up after the day of travel. I looked at my face in the mirror as I brushed through my tangled, damp hair. Maybe it was the light, but already I looked sallower, unhealthy. My skin could be pretty – it was very clear, almost translucent-looking – but it all depended on color. I had no color here.

Facing my pallid reflection in the mirror, I was forced to admit that I was lying to myself. It wasn't just physically that I'd never fit in. And if I couldn't find a niche in a school with three thousand people, what were my chances here?

I didn't relate well to people my age. Maybe the truth was that I didn't relate well to people, period. Even Mana, who I was closer to than anyone else on the planet, was never in harmony with me, never on exactly the same page. Sometimes I wondered if I was seeing the same things through my eyes that the rest of the world was seeing through theirs. Maybe there was a glitch in my brain.

But the cause didn't matter. All that mattered was the effect. And tomorrow would be just the beginning.

- O -

I didn't sleep well that night, even after I was done crying. Yes I cried, get over it. The constant _whoosh_ing of the rain and the wind across the roof wouldn't fade into the background. I pulled the faded old quilt over my head, and later added the pillow, too. But I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, when the rain finally settled into a quieter drizzle.

Thick fog was all I could see out my window in the morning, and I could feel the claustrophobia creeping up on me. You could never see the sky here; it was like a cage.

Breakfast with Cross was a quiet event. He wished me good luck at school. I thanked him, knowing his efforts were wasted. Good luck tended to avoid me. Cross left first, off to the police station that was his wife and family. It still amazed me that Cross of all people was a Chief cop, it was like saying I was a super model with a flawless body, it seemed impossible. But still, if Cross could be a good cop then maybe I could be a super model - yea right. After he left, I sat at the old square oak table in one of the three unmatching chairs and examined his small kitchen, with its dark paneled walls, bright yellow cabinets, and white linoleum floor. Nothing was changed. Mana had painted the cabinets eighteen years ago in an attempt to bring some sunshine into the house. Over the small fire-place in the adjoining handkerchief-sized family room was a row of pictures. First a wedding picture of Cross and Mana in Las Vegas, then one of the three of us in the hospital after they adopted me to make sure I wasn't sick after having lived in the streets, taken by a helpful nurse, followed by the procession of my school pictures up to last year's. Cross cared for Mana and me and decided to keep the pictures and put them on display. Still, those were embarrassing to look at – I would have to see what I could do to get Cross to put them somewhere else, at least while I was living here.

It was impossible, being in this house, not to realize that Cross had never really gotten over Mana. It made me uncomfortable.

I didn't want to be too early to school, but I couldn't stay in the house anymore. I donned my jacket – which was one size too big for me, making me look smaller to my annoyance – and headed out into the rain.

It was just drizzling still, not enough to soak me through immediately as I reached for the house key that was always hidden under the eaves by the door, and locked up. The sloshing of my new waterproof boots against grass was unnerving. I missed the normal thud tap of cement pavement as I walked. I couldn't pause and admire my truck again as I wanted; I was in a hurry to get out of the misty wet that swirled around my head and clung to my hair under my hood.

Inside the truck, it was nice and dry. Either Bookman or Cross had obviously cleaned it up, but the tan upholstered seats still smelled faintly of tobacco, gasoline, and peppermint. The engine started quickly, to my relief, but loudly, roaring to life and then idling at top volume. Well, a truck this old was bound to have a flaw. The antique radio worked, a plus that I haven't expected.

Finding the school wasn't difficult, though I'd never been there before. The school was, like most other things, just off the highway. It was not obvious that it was a school; only the sign, which declared it to be the Forks High School, made me stop. It looked like a collection of matching houses, built with maroon-colored bricks. There were so many trees and shrubs I couldn't see its size at first. Where were the chain-link fences, the metal detectors?

I parked in front of the first building, which had a small sign over the door reading FRONT OFFICE. No one else was parked there, so I was sure it was off limits, but I decided I would get directions inside instead of circling around in the rain like an idiot. I stepped unwillingly out of the toasty truck cab and walked down a little stone path lined with dark hedges. I took a deep breath before opening the door.

Inside, it was brightly lit, and warmer than I'd hoped. The office was small; a little waiting area with padded folding chairs, orange-flecked commercial carpet, notices and awards cluttering the walls, a big clock ticking loudly. Plants grew everywhere in the large plastic pots, as if there wasn't enough greenery outside. The room was cut in half by a long counter, cluttered with wire baskets full of papers and brightly colored fryers taped to its front. There were three desks behind the counter, one of which was manned by a large, red-haired woman wearing glasses. She was wearing glasses. She was wearing a purple t-shirt, which immediately made me feel overdressed.

The red-haired woman looked up, I saw the sparks of dislike and distrust before they settled back to its fake welcoming gleam. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Alleyne* Marian Walker," I informed her, and saw the immediate awareness light her eyes. I was expected, a topic of gossip no doubt. Adopted son of the Chief's flighty ex-husband, come home at last.

"Of course," she said. She dug through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk till she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedule right here, and a map of the school." She brought several sheets to the counter to show me.

She went through my classes for me, highlighting the best route to each on the map, and gave me a slip to have each teacher sign, which I was to bring back at the end of the day. She smiled at me and hoped, like Cross, that I would like it here in Forks. I smiled back as convincingly as I could.

When I went back out to my truck, other students were starting to arrive. I drove around the school, following the line of traffic. I was glad to see that most of the cars were older like mine, nothing flashy. At home I'd lived in one of the few lower-income neighborhoods that were included in the Brixton* District. It was a common thing to see a new Mercedes or Porsche in the student lot. The nicest car here was a shiny Volvo, and it stood out. Still, I cut the engine as soon as I was in a spot, so that the thunderous volume wouldn't draw attention to me.

I looked at the map in the truck, trying to memorize it now; hopefully I wouldn't have to walk around with it stuck in front of my nose all day. I stuffed everything in my bag, slung the strap over my shoulder, and sucked in a huge breath. I can do this, I lied to myself feebly. No one was going to bite me. I finally exhaled and stepped out of the truck.

I pulled the hood of my jacket over my head, making sure my white hair and most of my face was hidden from view, as I walked to the sidewalk, crowded with teenagers. My plain black jacket didn't stand out, I noticed with relief.

Once I got around the cafeteria, building three was easy to spot. A large black "3" was painted on a white square on the east corner. I felt my breathing gradually creeping toward hyperventilation as I approached the door. I tried holding my breath as I followed two unisex raincoats through the door.

The classroom was small. The people in front of me stopped just inside the door to hang up their coats on a long row of hooks. They were two girls, one a porcelain-colored blonde, the other also pale, with light brown hair. At least my skin wouldn't be a standout here. Still, not like it was the main reason I stood out anyway. I decided that it was inevitable, that I would take of my coat sooner or later so no point in stopping the inevitable. With that in mind I took off my coat and hanged it on the hook too and then made my way to the teacher's desk.

I gave the slip to the teacher, a tall, balding man whose desk had a nameplate identifying him as Mr. Mason. I saw the same sparks of dislike and distrust as I saw with the lady at the office. When he looked down at my name he gawked at me – not an encouraging response – and of course I flushed deep red, from both embarrassment at being gawked at by him and the rest of the curious student in the classroom and as well as anger at the judgments and assumptions I could feel that they were making about me due to my appearance alone. People were all hypocrites. But at least he sent me to an empty desk at the back without introducing me to the class. It was harder for my new classmates to stare at me in the back, but somehow, they managed. I kept my eyes down on the reading list the teacher had given me. It was fairly basic: Brontë, Shakespeare, Chaucer, and Faulkner. I'd already read everything. That was comforting...and boring. I wondered if Mana would send me my folder of old essays, or if he would think that was cheating. I went through different arguments with him in my head while the teacher droned on.

When the bell rang, a nasal buzzing sound, a gangly boy with skin problems and an Afro style hairdo leaned across the aisle to talk to me.

"You're Alleyne Marian Walker, aren't you?" He looked like the overly helpful, chess club type.

"Allen," I corrected. Everyone within a three-seat radius turned to look at me.

"Where's your next class?" he asked.

I had to check in my book-bag. "Um, Government, with Jefferson, in building six."

There was nowhere to look without meeting curious eyes. Seriously, didn't these people have anything better to do?

"I'm headed toward building four, I could show you the way..." Definitely over-helpful. "I'm Johnny," he added.

I smiled tentatively. "Thanks."

We got our jackets and headed out into the rain, which had picked up. I could have sworn several people behind us were walking close enough to eavesdrop. I hoped I wasn't getting too paranoid.

"So, this is a lot different than London, huh?" he asked.

"Very."

"It's much bigger there, right?"

"Yes, it is the capital of England, and a major tourist spot after all."

"Wow, what must that be like?" he wondered.

"Active and social."

"You don't seem very active or social."

"I was raised by the Queen of England."*

He studied my face apprehensively, and I sighed. It looked like the constant clouds and a sense of humor didn't mix. A few months of this and I'd forget how to use sarcasm.

We walked back around the cafeteria, to the south building by the gym. Johnny walked me right to the door, though it was clearly marked.

"Well, good luck," he said as I touched the handle. "Maybe we'll have some other classes together." He sounded hopeful, which was strange but I decided not to dwell on it.

I smiled at him vaguely and went inside.

The rest of the morning passed in about the same fashion. My Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Varner, who I would have hated anyway just because of the subject he taught, was the only one who made me stand in front of the class and introduce myself. I stammered, blushed, and tripped over my own boots on the way to my seat.

After two classes, I stared to recognize several of the faces in each class. There was always someone braver than the others who would introduce themselves and ask me several questions about how I was liking Forks. I tried to be diplomatic, but mostly I just lied a lot. At least I never needed the map.

One boy sat next to me in both Trig and Spanish, and he walked with me to the cafeteria for lunch. He was taller, three inches taller than my five feet two inches, but I contribute an inch was due to his spiky hair. I couldn't remember his name, so I smiled and nodded as he babbled on about teachers and classes. I didn't try to keep up.

Once we got our turn on line I had the pleasure of meeting the school's chef, Jerry. The one good thing about this school was that their lunch program was sponsored by some hot shot billionaire, which meant their lunches were top notch in both quality and quantity. Once the boy spiky haired boy had his ordered I made mine, by the end of it both were looking at me with wide eyes. I had a high metabolism disorder which forced me to eat vast quantities of food in order to supply my body with sufficient energy for it to function normally, well maybe not forced since I enjoy eating the food. Still just another thing to add to my long list of freaky qualities. Once I explained that to them Jerry seemed elated and cooked everything I had ordered in record time without another question. The spiky haired boy still eyed me warily but made to further comments as he led me to a table.

We sat at the end of a full table with several of his friends, who he introduced to me. I forgot all their names as soon as he spoke them. They seemed impressed by his bravery in speaking to me. The boy from English, Johnny, waved at me from across the room.

It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with seven curious strangers, that I first saw them.

They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room. There were five of them. They weren't talking, and they weren't eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. They weren't gawking at me, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, my attention.

They didn't look anything alike. Of the three boys, one was big – muscled like a serious weight lifter, dark skinned, he was bald except for this one long braid made from the only black stands for hair he possessed at the top back side of his head, he also wore a big pair of ear phones which seemed to complete his overall look (He looks like he did after the Ark, during the whole Zombie fiasco and onwards, opps spoilers XP). Another was taller, leaner, but still quite muscular; he had dark brown hair that was slicked back with one stray bang in his face. The last was lanky, less bulky, with long dark blue hair tied back in a pony-tail with two bangs adorning the sides of his face. I would have mistaken him for a girl was it not for the face the bangs were adorning, so perfect, angular, and completely male. He was more boyish than the others, who looked like they could be in college, or even teachers here rather than students.

The girls were opposites. The slightly shorter one was statuesque. She had a beautiful figure, the kind you saw on the cover of the _Sports Illustrated_ swimsuit issue, the kind that made every girl around her take a hit on her self-esteem just by being in the same room. Her hair was dark green, almost black; it was tied up in a pair of long pigtails that reached to her elbows. The taller girl was more mature looking, skinny yet fit and full, like she was done growing despite still being technically a teen. Her dark brown hair was curly and reached to her shoulders. Her eyes were surrounded by a lot of black make up making her resemble a raccoon, yet despite this she looked very pretty.

And yet, they were all exactly alike. Every one of them was chalky pale, the palest of all the students living in this sunless town. Paler than me, the albino. Even the dark skinned one also looked pale, how that could be I didn't know but he was. They all had very dark eyes despite the range in hair tones. They also had dark shadows under those eyes – purplish, bruise-like shadows. As if they were all suffering from a sleepless night, or almost done recovering from a broken nose. Though their noses, all their features, were straight, perfect, and angular.

But all this is not why I couldn't look away.

I stared because their faces, so different, so similar, were all devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful. They were faces you never expect to see except perhaps on the airbrushed pages of a fashion magazine. Or painted by an old master as the face of an angel. It was hard to decide who was more beautiful – maybe the perfect green haired girl, or the dark blue pony-tailed boy.

They were all looking away – away from each other, away from the other students, away from anything in particular as far as I could tell. As I watched, the taller girl rose with her tray – unopened soda, unbitten apple, what a waste – nervously, like she was afraid that she was going to trip and fall, and walked away with a quick, graceful lope that belonged on a runaway. I watched, amazed at her lithe dancer's step, till she dumped her tray and glided through the back door, faster than I would have thought possible. So much for her fear of falling. My eyes darted back to the others, who sat unchanging.

"Who are _they_?" I asked the spiky haired boy from my Spanish class, whose name I'd forgotten.

As he looked up to see who I meant – though already knowing, probably, from my tone – suddenly he looked at him, the thinner one, the boyish one, the youngest, perhaps. He looked at my neighbor for just a fraction of a second, and then his dark eyes flickered to mine.

He looked away quickly, more quickly than I could, though in a flush of embarrassment I dropped my eyes at once. In that brief flash of a glance, his face held nothing of interest – it was as if he called his name, and he'd looked up in involuntary response, already having decided not to answer.

My neighbor giggled in embarrassment, which I noted sounded weird, while looking at the table like I did.

"Judging by the fact we had the same reaction I'm guessing your bi too?"

"Gay actually." I corrected. Well it's no big shock with the parents I have, not that that is my only reason, I just never found women sexually attractive but men on the other hand...

"I figured as much, with your dad and all." Apparently he also made that connection which probably means most of the school did too. That's good, saves me the trouble of explaining to people.

"Well let me tell you who they are." He turned his head towards them and I did as well to follow along with his explanation.

"That's Kanda, Marie, and Lenalee Lee, and Suman Dark. The one who left is Miranda Dark; they all live together with Dr. Lee and his wife." He said this under his breath.

I glanced sideways to the beautiful boy, who was looking at his tray now, picking a bagel to pieces with long, pale fingers. His mouth was moving very quickly, his perfect lips barely opening. The other three still looked away, and yet I felt he was speaking quickly to them.

Strange, unpopular names, I thought. The kinds of names grandparents had. But maybe that was in vogue here – small town names? I finally remembered that my neighbor' was called Chaoji, a perfectly common name for someone of Chinese descent*. There were two boys named Chaoji in my History class back home.

"They are...very nice-looking." I struggled with the conspicuous understatement.

"Yes!" Chaoji agreed with another giggle, I wish he stopped giggling because it sounded annoying and weird with the tone of voice he possessed which was too deep for giggling. "They're all _together _though – Marie and Miranda, and Suman and Lenalee, I mean. And they _live_ together." His voice held all the shock and condemnation of the small town, I thought critically. But, if I was being honest, I had to admit that even in London, it would cause gossip."

"Which ones are the Lee's?" I asked. "They don't look related..."

"Oh, they're not. Dr. Lee is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Dark's _are _brother and sister, twins – the brunets – and they're foster children."

"They look a little old for foster children."

"They are now, Suman and Miranda are both eighteen, but they've been with Mrs. Lee since they were eight. She's their aunt or something like that."

"That's really kind of nice – for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything." It really was nice; they reminded me of how Mana and Cross adopted me. I smiled.

"I guess so," Chaoji admitted reluctantly, and I got the impression that he didn't like the doctor or his wife for some reason. With the glance he was throwing at their adopted children, I could presume the reason was jealousy. "I think that Mrs. Lee can't have any kids, though," he added, as if that lessened their kindness. Which in my eyes did not.

Throughout all this conversation, my eyes flickered again and again to the table where the strange family sat. They continued to look at the walls and not eat. Talk about a waste of good food.

"Have they always lived in Forks?" I asked. Surely I would have noticed them on one of my summers here.

"No," he said in a voice that implied it should be obvious, even to a new arrival like me. "They just moved down two years ago from somewhere in Alaska."

I felt a surge of pity, and relief. Pity because, as beautiful as they were, they were outsiders, clearly not accepted. Relief that I wasn't the only newcomer here, and certainly not the most interesting despite my circumstances and appearance.

As I examined them, the youngest, one of the Lee's, looked up and met my gaze, this time with evident curiosity in his expression. As I looked swiftly away, it seemed to me that his glance held some kind of unmet expectation.

"Which one is the boy with his dark blue hair tied back?" I asked. I peeked at him from the corner of my eye, and he was still staring at me, but not gawking like the other students had today – he had a clearly frustrated expression. I looked down again.

"That's Kanda. He's gorgeous, of course, but don' waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently none of the people here are good enough for him. Not girls or boys." He grunted, a clear case of the sour grapes. I wonder when he'd turned him down.

I bit my lip to hide my smile. Then I glanced at him again. His face was turned away, but I thought his cheeks appeared slightly lifted, as if he was smirking, too.

After a few more minutes, the four of them left the table together. They all were noticeably graceful – even the big, brawny one. It was unsettling to watch. The one named Kanda didn't look at me again.

I sat at the table with Chaoji and his friends longer that I would have if I'd been sitting alone. I was anxious not to be late for class on my first day. One of my new acquaintances, who considerately reminded me that her name was Lou Fa, had Biology II with me the next hour. We walked to class together in silence. She was shy, too.

When we entered the classroom, Lou Fa went to sit at a black-topped lab table exactly like the ones I was used to. She already had a neighbor. In fact, all the tables were filled but one. Next to the center aisle, I recognized Kanda Lee by his unusual hair, sitting next to that single open seat.

As I walked down the aisle to introduce myself to the teacher and get my slip signed, I was watching him surreptitiously. Just as I passed, he suddenly went rigid in his seat. He stared at me again, meeting my eyes with the strangest expression on his face – it was hostile, furious. I looked away quickly, shocked, going red again. I stumbled over a book in the walkway and had to catch myself on the edge of a table. The girl sitting there giggled.

I'd noticed that his eyes were black – coal black.

Mr. Banner signed my slip and handed me a book with no nonsense about introductions. I could tell we were going to get along. Of course, he had no choice but to send me to the one open seat in the middle of the room. I kept my eyes down as I went to sit by _him_, bewildered by the antagonistic glare he'd given me.

I didn't look up as I set my books on the table and took my seat, but I saw his posture change from the corner of my eye. He was leaning away from me, sitting on the extreme edge of his chair and averting his face like he smelled something bad. Inconspicuously, I sniffed my hair. It smelled like coconuts, the scent of my favorite shampoo. It seemed like an innocent enough odor. I placed my left arm in the middle of the table, who knows maybe my disfigured arm might form some sort of an _invisible barrier_ between us, and tried to pay attention to the teacher.

Unfortunately the lecture was on cellular anatomy, something I'd already studied. I took notes carefully anyway, always looking down.

I couldn't stop myself from peeking occasionally through my _invisible barrier _at the boy next to me. During the whole class, he never relaxed his stiff position on the edge of his chair, sitting as far from me as possible. I could see his hand on his left leg was clenched into a fist, tendons standing out under his pale skin. This, too, he never relaxed. He had the long sleeves of his white shirt pushed up to his elbows, and his forearm was surprisingly hard and muscular beneath his light skinned. He wasn't nearly as slight as he'd looked next to his burly dark skinned brother.

The class seemed to drag on longer than the others. Was it because the day was finally coming to a close, or because I was waiting for his tight fist to loosen? It never did; he continued to sit so still it looked like he wasn't breathing. What was wrong with him? Was this his normal behavior? I questioned my judgment on Chaoji's bitterness at lunch today. Maybe he was not as resentful as I'd thought.

It couldn't have anything to do with me. He didn't know me from Eve. I couldn't be because of my arm either, usually when people saw it they had this sort of reaction, but I was wearing a long sleeved shirt and gloves and even under that my whole arm was wrapped in bandages from the tips of my fingers to the top of my shoulder. Maybe he had aversion to part albinos? Well that would be stupid and hypocritical since he seems part albino too with his super extra pale skin. Still I could help but feel this had nothing to do with my appearance, but if not then what?

I peeked up at him one more time, and regretted it. He was glaring down at me again, his black eyes full of revulsion. As I flinched away from him, shrinking against my chair, the phrase _is looks could kill _suddenly rang through my mind.

At that moment, the bell rang loudly, making me jump, and Kanda Lee was out of his seat. Fluidly he rose – he was taller than I thought – his back to me, and he was out the door before anyone else was out of their seat.

I sat frozen in my seat, staring blankly after him. He was so mean. I know it's childish to say it but it wasn't fair. I began gathering up my things slowly, trying to block the anger that filled me, for fear my eyes would tear up. I usually cried when angry, a humiliatingly girly tendency.

"Aren't you Alleyne Marian Walker?" a male voice asked.

I looked up to see a cute, baby-faced boy, his honey blond hair carefully gelled into slight orderly spikes, smiling at me in a friendly way. He obviously didn't think I smelled bad.

"Allen," I corrected him, with a smile.

"I'm Bak."

"Hi, Bak."

"Do you need any help finding your next class?"

"I'm headed to the gym, actually. I think I can find it."

"That's my next class, too." He seemed thrilled, though why he seemed thrilled I didn't know.

We walked to class together; he was a chatterer – he supplied most of the conversation, which made it easy for me. He'd lived in China till he was ten, so he knew how I felt about switching countries. It turned out he was in my English class also. He was the nicest person I'd met today.

But as we were entering the gym, he asked, "So, did you stab Kanda Lee with a pencil or what? I'd never seen him act like that."

I cringed. So I wasn't the only one who noticed. And, apparently, that _wasn't _Kanda Lee's usual behavior. I decided to play dumb.

"Was that the boy I sat next to in Biology?" I asked while I tilted my head to the side to feign cluelessness.

"Yes," he said with a blush. "He looked like he was in pain or something."

"I don't know," I responded while I placed a finger to my lips to seem in thought. "I never spoke to him."

"He's a weird guy." He looked away with a deeper blush, maybe he was sick? "If I would have been lucky enough to sit by you, I would have talked to you."

Once we got to the Gym door he held it open for me, I smiled at him before walking through. He was friendly and clearly wasn't prejudice about physical appearances. But it wasn't enough to ease my irritation about a certain prejudice jerk. When I turned back to thank Bak I found him on the floor fainted with a deep blush and certain red blotches on his face. A gruff and intimidating looking man with white hair quickly rushed to his side and rushed him to the infirmary. I stood there dumfounded.

When the man came back from leaving Bak at the infirmary I learned he was my new Gym teacher. He was called Coach Wong, he miraculously found me a uniform despite my slight figure, I suspected it was the girls uniform seeing as it looked way too small to a boy's uniform but I decided not to call Coach Wong on it though since it took him a while to find any uniform that would fit me. Luckily, he didn't make me dress down for today's class. In London, only two years of P.E. were required. Here, P.E. was mandatory all four years. Forks was literally my personal hell on earth.

I watched four volleyball games running simultaneously. Remembering how many injuries I had sustained – and inflicted – playing volleyball, I felt faintly nauseated.

The final bell rang at last. I walked slowly to the office to return my paper work. The rain had drifted away, but the wind was strong, and colder. I wrapped my arms around myself.

When I walked into the warm office, I almost turned around and walked back out.

Kanda Lee stood at the desk in front of me. I recognized again that dark blue hair tied back in a pony-tail. He didn't appear to notice the sound of my entrance. I stood pressed against the back wall, waiting for the receptionist to be free.

He was arguing with her in a low, attractive voice. I quickly picked up the gist of the argument. He was trying to trade from sixth-hour Biology to another time – any other time.

I just could believe that this was about me. It had to be something else, something that happened before I entered the Biology room. The look on his face must have been about another aggravation entirely. It was impossible that this stranger could take such a sudden, intense, dislike to me so quickly. Even when someone did take a dislike to me they just tended to ignore me, this was the first time someone had actually tried to get out of any class with me.

The door opened again, and the cold wind suddenly gusted through the room, rustling the papers on the desk, rustling my hair around my face. The girl who came in merely stepped to the desk, placed a note in the wire basket, and walked out again. But Kanda Lee's back stiffened, and he turned slowly to glare at me – his face was absurdly handsome – with piercing, hate-filled eyes. For an instant, I felt a thrill of genuine fear, raising the hair on the back of my neck. The look only lasted a second, but it chilled me more than the freezing wind. He turned back to the receptionist.

"Che, never mind, then," he said hastily in a voice like velvet. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." And he turned on his heel without another look at me, and disappeared out the door.

I went meekly to the desk, my face white for once instead of red, and handed her the signed slip.

"How did your first day go, dear?" the receptionist asked maternally.

"Fine," I lied, putting on my poker smile. She looked convinced.

When I got to the truck, it was almost the last car in the lot. It seemed like a haven, already the closest thing to home I had in this constantly cloudy and damp green hole. I sat inside for a while, just staring out the windshield blankly. But soon I was cold enough to need the heater, so I turned the key and the engine roared to life. I headed back to Cross' house, fighting frustrated tears the whole way there.

* * *

**Finally it is done! The first chapter! OMG I never knew typing one chapter could take soo long! Well maybe not this long since I was without a computer for a month, I am currently using my twin cousins' laptop to finish this. Oh bless their souls, thank you Ronald and Roger even though you will never be reading this but still. For those who don't know I am currently in Bolivia during this summer vacation to visit my family here, I will be staying till august 15 then I will fly back to the USA but even then I will be busy getting ready for my first year of college. So what I'm basically saying is please bear with me on this, I don't plan on stopping this story just that updating it will take a bit of time till I'm adjusted to my new college setting and how much time I can dedicate to this story will depend on how my schedule is. But I will not drop it so don't worry. **

**Any who, thank you to all that reviewed, favorite and story alerted this story, you have no idea how happy you all make me! It is you people that motivate me to finish typing this story till currently 1am at night. Love you all!**

**Now time to explain all the * symbols:**

**1* Phil Anderson: I don't know Phil's last name in Twilight, in fact I don't even think they ever mention it and even if they do I'm too lazy to look it up and change it so live with it.**

**2*** **Alleyne Marian Walker****: I had a hard time coming up with a solution to the whole Isabella/Bella name crisis. I tried to come up with a name close to Allen but got nothing so I researched for any names similar to Allen, then I came across Alleyne which is an old version of the name Allen****it's not made up you can really look it up and check for yourselves. As for the Marian part in the name I figured Allen should have both of his foster fathers name as part of his own. I tried Alleyne Walker Marian at first but I preferred Alleyne Marian Walker, it sounds better to me.**

**3*** **Brixton District****: I did a bit of research and found out the Brixton borough in London is low income, it twilight Bella lived a low income neighborhood in Phoenix so I tried to match that up. I know nothing about England other than the obvious like its capital being London. Other than that I know practically nothing so if I get the info wrong I'm sorry but just go along with it so it can go with the story. If it really bothers you PM what the problem is and its solution and I will decided whether to change it or not. If it messes too much with the story than obviously no and please don't just type "The info here is wrong you should fix it."**** Provide the solution or I will just ignore it.**

**4*I was raised by Queen of England: Once again I know nothing of England or its queen so ****British**** people ****please don't feel offend. I just tried to make a sarcastic joke like in the book. In movies I watched that had kings and queens and royalty over all I saw that they taught them to be serious, calm, collected and not to draw attention to themselves unless necessary. You know the whole **_**do not speak unless spoken to**_** regime. So yea that's what I meant by the joke, I have nothing against the Queen of England. **

**5*** **Chaoji,** **a perfectly common name for someone of Chinese descent****: I have no idea if it is or not, I just need it to go with the story.**

**One last thing I want to point out, Kanda's name Yuu will be used in the story it will just come later as well as the rest of the characters last names. I will explain all this in a later chapter when it comes up. As for their eyes, it will not be exactly like the story; I'll explain that in the next chapter when it comes up.**

**Also if you have any tips or suggestions about the story I would greatly appreciate it. Also if you have suggestion on who James, Victoria, and Laurent should be that would be great. Especially Victoria since she appears in three of the four books. Please don't mention Rhode, Tyki, or Lulubell because I already decided who they will be.**

**Ok please review because that's what motivates me to type, so the more reviews I get the more I type and the faster you will be getting your story updates. So click the review button below if you want more of this story!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Neko: "Ok hi everyone! I'm back after being resurrected from my death by insane college studying! And with my resurrection comes another chapter so yay! (Throws confetti in the air)**

**Kanda: "Che, took you long enough. Why don't you try to update your story before the stupid people who read it die of old age."**

**Neko: "Gasp, Kanda! Don't insult the reviewers!"**

**Allen: "Yea Kanda, if it weren't for them we wouldn't exist!"**

**Kanda: "How do you figure that, Baka Moyashi?" **

**Allen: "My name is Allen! We'll the people who read Yullen fanfiction most probably watch and/or read -man too."**

**Kanda: "You're point being?"**

**Neko: "What he means, Kanda, is that these people probably bought the manga that you exist in and them buying it motivated the mangaka to keep making it, in turn creating your existence." **

**Kanda: "…"**

**Allen: "Wow, this moment should be documented. The day that Kanda was left speechless and outsmarted."**

**Neko: "Well since this is on the internet I guess it sort of is now."**

**Allen: "I should tell Lavi-" (Gets cut off by Mugen being pointed at his neck.)**

**Kanda: "Tell anyone, especially the Baka Usagi, and you will not live to see the next chapter. Got it?" (Emphasizes his point by pressing Mugen to Allen's neck creating a thin line.)"**

**Allen: "G-Got it. Could you p-please remove Mugen from my neck n-now?"**

**Kanda: "Che." (Lowers Mugen from Allen's neck...only to point it at Neko!)**

**Neko: "Epp!"**

**Kanda: "That goes for you too Baka Neko."**

**Neko: "O-Okay." (Kanda sheaths Mugen.)**

**Allen: "One more thing, Neko." (A dark aura starts emanating from Allen.)**

**Neko: "Y-Yea?"**

**Allen: "How dare you make Mana and Master Cross a couple?"**

**Neko: "If it's any conciliation they're divorced now?"**

**Allen: "You still made Mana and me gay!"**

**Neko: "Well that is sort of the point since it's a yaoi story, Allen-chan."**

**Allen: "My name is just Allen! How does the fact that its yaoi make this story gay?"**

**Neko: "Sigh, I don't have time for this. Kanda, please explain the whole yaoi concept to Allen?"**

**Kanda: "Che, why should I?"**

**Neko: "Do it or I won't put your precious Mugen in this story."**

**Kanda: "Damn you." (Drags Allen to an empty bedroom to explain.)**

**Neko: "If only they were doing what I wish they were doing in that empty bedroom…Oh well onto the story. I own neither -man or Twilight-" (gets cut of as a shout is heard from within the bedroom.)**

**Allen: "YAOI IS WHAT?"**

**Neko: "Oh Allen…"**

* * *

**2. Open Book**

The next day was better…and slightly worse.

It was better because it wasn't raining yet, though the clouds were dense and opaque. It was easier because I knew what to expect of my day. Bak came to sit by me in English, and walked me to my next class, with Chess Club Johnny glaring at him all the while; that was flattering. People didn't look at me quite as much as they had yesterday. Today's lunch included mitarashi dango which is my absolute favorite dessert and Jerry was kind enough to give me twenty. I sat with a big group at lunch that included Bak, Johnny, Chaoji, Lou Fa, and several other people whose names and faces I now remembered. I began to feel like I was treading water, instead of drowning in it.

It was worse because I was tired; I still couldn't sleep with the wind echoing around the house or with Cross making all that drunken noise with that woman he brought home; well at least he has the decency to rent a motel room for when he wants to _do it_ with them but I think it's just because Mana asked him to. It was worse because Mr. Varner called on me in Trig when my hand wasn't raised and I had the wrong answer. It was miserable because I had to play volleyball and had to explain to everyone about my bandaged arm and that it was medical condition, without showing any of the red deformed skin; that and the one time I didn't cringe out of the way from the ball, I hit my teammate in the head with it. Those were all the things that made this day slightly worse, it had nothing to do with the fact that Kanda Lee wasn't in school today; nope that had nothing to do with it.

All morning I was dreading lunch, fearing his bizarre glares. Part of me wanted to confront him and demand to know what his problem was. While I was lying sleepless in my bed, I even imagined what I would say. But I knew myself too well to think I would really have the guts to do it. Doing that would mean drawing more unnecessary attention to myself, something I didn't need.

But when I walked into the cafeteria with Chaoji – trying to keep my eyes from sweeping the place for him, and failing entirely – I saw that his four siblings of sorts were sitting together at the same table, and he was not with them.

Bak intercepted us and steered us to his table. Chaoji seemed elated by the attention, and his friend quickly joined us. But as I tried to listen to their easy chatter, I was terribly uncomfortable, waiting nervously for the moment he would arrive. I hoped that he would simply ignore me when he came, and prove my suspicions false.

He didn't come, and as time passed I grew more and more tense…I mean relaxed!

I walked to Biology with more confidence when, by the end of lunch, he still hadn't showed. Bak, who was taking on the qualities of a golden retriever, walked faithfully by my side to class. I held my breath at the door, but Kanda Lee wasn't there, either. I exhaled a relieved breath and went to my seat. Bak followed, talking about an upcoming trip to the beach. He lingered by my desk till the bell rang. Then he smiled at me wistfully and went to sit next to a girl with orange hair and anger management issues. I looked like I would have to do something about Bak, and it wouldn't be easy. In a town like this, where everyone lived on top of everyone else, diplomacy was essential. I had never been enormously tactful; I had no practice dealing with overly friendly boys due to obvious reasons.

I was relieved that I had the desk to myself, that Kanda was absent. At least that's what I told myself repeatedly. But I couldn't get rid of the nagging suspicion that I was the reason he wasn't there. It was ridiculous, and egotistical, to think that I of all people could affect anyone that strongly. It was impossible. I could have laughed at myself for thinking of it; and yet I couldn't stop the worry that it was true. Fine, so Kanda Lee _was_ a big reason why this day was worse.

When the school day was finally done, and the blush was fading out of my cheeks from the volleyball incident, I changed quickly back into my jeans and navy blue sweater to avoid further inspection of my bandaged left arm. I hurried from the boy's locker room, pleased to find that I had successfully evaded my retriever friend for the moment. I walked swiftly out to the parking lot. It was crowded now with fleeting students. I got in my truck and dug through my bag to make sure I had what I needed.

Last night I'd discovered that Cross still didn't cook much besides fried eggs and bacon. So I requested that I be assigned kitchen detail for the duration of my stay. It was no surprise when he willing handed over all of the kitchen duties to me. It was that way that I found out that he had no food in the house, except for varies amounts of wines and beers. I had my shopping list and the cash from the jar in the cupboard labeled "FOOD MONEY", and I was on my way to the Thriftway.

I gunned my deafening engine to life, ignoring the heads that turned in my direction, and backed carefully into a place in the line of cars that were waiting to exit the parking lot. As I waited, trying to pretend that the earsplitting rumble was coming from someone else's car, I saw the two Lee's and Hale twins getting into their car. It was the shiny new Volvo. Of course. I hadn't noticed their clothes before now – I'd been too mesmerized by their faces. Now that I looked, it was obvious that they were all dressed exceptionally well; simply, but in clothes that subtly hinted at designer origins. With their remarkable good looks, the style with which they carried themselves, they could have worn dishrags and pulled it off. It seemed excessive for them to have both good looks and money. But as far as I could tell, life worked that way most of the time. It didn't look as if it bought them any acceptance here.

No, I didn't fully believe that. The isolation must be their desire; I couldn't imagine any door that wouldn't be opened by that degree of beauty.

They looked at my noisy truck as I passed them, just like everyone else. I kept my eyes straight forward and was relieved when I finally was free of the school grounds.

The Thriftway was not far from the schools, just a few streets south, off the highway. It was nice to be inside the supermarket; it felt normal. I did the shopping at home, and I fell into the pattern of the familiar task gladly. The store was big enough inside that I couldn't hear the tapping of the rain on the roof to remind me where I was.

When I got home, I unloaded all the groceries, stuffing them in wherever I could find an open space. I hoped Cross wouldn't mind too much at the amount of food I bought, but I did eat a lot. I wrapped 22 potatoes in foil and stuck them in the oven to bake, covered 5 steaks in marinade and balanced it on top of a five carton of eggs in the fridge.

When I was finished with that, I took my book bag upstairs. Before starting my homework, I changed into a pair of dry sweats, pulled my damp hair back into a short ponytail, and checked my e-mail for the first time. I had three messages.

"Allen," my Papa Mana wrote...

_Write me as soon as you get in. Tell me how your flight was. Is it raining? I miss you already. I'm almost finished packing for Florida, but I cant find my blue shirt. Do you know where I put it? Phil says hi. Papa._

I sighed and went to the next. It was sent eight hours after the first.

"Allen," he wrote...

_Why haven't you e-mailed me yet? What are you waiting for? Did Cross make you start working already? If he did then tell me so I can throttle him. Papa._

The last from this morning.

_Alleyne,_

_If I haven't heard from you by 5:30 p.m. today I'm calling Cross._

I checked the clock. I still had an hour, but my Papa was well known for jumping the gun.

_Papa,_

_Calm down. I'm writing right now. Don't do anything rash._

_Allen_

I sent that, and began again.

_Papa,_

_Everything is great. Of course it's raining. I was waiting for something to write about. School isn't bad, just a little repetitive. I met some nice kids who sit by me at lunch._

_Your shirt is at the dry cleaners-you were supposed to pick it up Friday._

_Cross bought me a truck, can you believe it? I couldn't either till I saw it, but it's real. I love it. It's old, but really sturdy, which is good, you know, for me._

_I miss you, too. I'll write again soon, but I'm not going to check my e-mail every five minutes. Relax, breath. I love you._

_Allen_

I had decided to read _Wuthering Height _– the novel we were currently studying in English – yet again for the fun of it, and that's what I was doing when Cross came home. I'd lost track of the time, and I hurried downstairs to take the potatoes out and put the steaks into the broil.

"Idiot Apprentice?" Cross called out when he heard me on the stairs.

Who else? I thought to myself.

"Hey, Master, welcome home."

"Thanks." He hung up his gun belt and stepped out of his boots as I bustled about the kitchen. As far as I was aware, he'd never shot his gun, Judgement, on the job. That doesn't mean he has never shot Judgement, just not during his job. When I came here as a child, he would always remove the bullets as soon as he walked in the door. I guess he considers me old enough now not to shoot myself by accident, and not depressed enough to shoot myself on purpose.

"What's for dinner?" he asked warily. My Papa was an imaginative cook, and his experiments weren't always edible. I was surprised, and sad, that he seemed to remember that far back. Did he really miss Papa that much?

"Steak and potatoes," I answered, and he looked relieved.

He seemed to feel uncomfortable standing in the kitchen doing nothing; he stalked over into the living room to watch TV while I worked. We were both more comfortable that way. I made a salad while the steaks cooked, and set the table.

I called him in when dinner was ready,and he sniffed the air as he walked into the room. Did he think I was going to poison him or something?

"Smells good, Idiot Apprentice."

"Thanks."

We ate in silence for a few minutes. It wasn't really uncomfortable. Neither of us was bothered by the quiet. In some ways, we were well suited to live together. Only in _some _ways.

"So, how'd you like the school? Did you make friends or did you just stay quiet like an idiot?" he rudely asked as he was taking seconds.

"Well, if you must know I did make some friends. I have some classes with a boy named Chaoji and he introduced me to his friends at lunch yesterday. I sit with them during lunch now. I also met this boy named Bak who's very friendly and sits with us as well. Everyone seems very nice." With one outstanding exception.

"That must be Bak Chan. His family runs a local sporting goods store just outside of town. They make good cash with all those idiots that like to hike in the woods around here. I wouldn't be caught dead doing that purposely, if I needed to tire myself out I would find a more pleasurable way to do so." commented Cross with a smirk. Pervert. Suddenly his mood changed and he frowned, I stared confused.

"The kid's an idiot if he think he has a chance with you. I should probably talk to him and make sure he has his standards well placed." he said with a grunt. I stared at him shocked that he came to that kind of conclusion, then I frowned as his words set in.

"You will do no such thing. He in one of my new friends and I don't want you to scare him or anyone away. Beside I'm sure he's already aware that I'm below his _standards_, as you call it." I sat back on my chair looking away from him. I knew that I wasn't good for anyone, I accepted that long ago. I sure didn't need him to remind me.

"Thats not what I meant, you Idiot Apprentice" he shot back, but I was tired of it so I decided to end it.

"Let's just drop this topic, ok? Can I ask a question now?"

"You sure are a stubborn brat. Whatever, just ask."

"Do you know the Lee family?" I asked hesitantly.

"'s family? Sure. Komui is a good man even if he acts like an idiot."

"Komui?"

"That's 's name. His wife's name is Helvaska, quite the looker, too bad she's taken. Why are you asking about them?"

"No reason, just curious. They...the kids...are a little different. They don't seem to fit in very well at school."

Cross surprised me by looking angry.

"People in this town," he muttered. "Komui is great surgeon who could work in whatever hospital he wants and make millions but he choses to work here," he continued, getting louder. "People here are damn lucky to have him – damn lucky Helvaska wanted to live in a small town. He's an asset to the town, and his kids are just as good. They don't give me hell like some of the others kids whose folks have been here since ages ago. Just because they're new, people have to talk shit."

It was the longest speech I'd ever heard Cross make, specially in the defense of other people. Cross must really feels strongly for them. This was a moment I would have to remember since it wasn't likely to happen ever gain.

After I saved it in my memory, I backpedaled a bit. "They seem nice enough to me. I just noticed they keep to themselves. They're all very attractive," I added hoping to lighten the mood.

"Yea, they all are. Good thing Komui's married or all the nurses wouldn't be available for work or good company." he replied with a lewd smirk. So much for him being mad, the perv.

We lapsed back into silence as we finished eating. He went back to watch TV while I cleared the table and washed the dishes by hand – no dishwasher – I went upstairs to unwillingly to work on my math homework. I could feel a tradition in the making.

That night it was finally quiet. I fell asleep quickly, exhausted.

The rest of the week was uneventful. I had managed to get a job in the local sporting goods store, my connection being Bak who asked his parents to hire, immediately after I had asked him where I could possibly get a job around here. He really was too good a friend, I might have to take Cross's speculation about Bak's interest in me into consideration. I got used to my classes. By Friday I was able to recognize, if not name, almost all the students at school. In Gym, the kids on my team learned to never pass me the ball and to step quickly in front of me if the opposing team tried to take advantage of my weakness. I happily stayed out of their way.

Kanda Lee didn't come back to school.

Every day I watched anxiously until the rest of the Lee's entered the cafeteria without him. Then I could relax and join in the lunchtime conversation. It mostly centered around a trip to the La Push Ocean Park in two weeks that Bak was putting together. I was invited, and I agreed to go, more out of politeness than desire. Beaches were suppose to be hot and dry, except for the ocean water. This beach was wet all over, yuck.

By Friday I was perfectly comfortable entering my Biology class, no longer worried that Kanda would be there. For all I knew, he had dropped out of school. I tried not to think about him, but I couldn't possibly suppress the worry that I was responsible for his continued absence, ridiculous as it seemed. And even if it was true then its his own stupidity, not mine.

My first weekend in Forks passed without incident. Cross, normally used to an empty house, went of to motels for most of the weekend doing who knows what, with who knows who. I cleaned the house, got ahead on my homework, and wrote Papa more bogusly cheerful e-mail. I also stared my new job at the sporting goods store, working from 2pm to 7pm on the weekends and 3pm to 6pm on the weekdays with Mondays and Fridays off. On my way back from work on Saturday I stopped at the local library, but it was so poorly stocked that I didn't bother getting a library card; I would have to make a date to visit Olympia or Seattle soon and find a good bookstore. I wondered idly what kind of gas mileage the truck got...and shuddered at the though of the price of the gas bill.

The rain stayed soft over the weekend, quiet, so I was able to sleep well.

People greeted me in the parking lot Monday morning. I didn't know all their names yet, so I waved back and smiled at everyone instead. It was colder this morning, but happily not raining. In English, Bak took his accustomed seat by my side. We had a pop quiz on _Wuthering Heights_. It was straightforward, super easy.

All in all, I was feeling a lot more comfortable than I had thought I would feel by this point. More comfortable than I had ever expected to feel here.

When we walked out of class, the air was full of swirling bits of white. I could hear people shouting excitedly to each other. The wind bit at my cheeks and nose. Great, now I'll look like a blushing Rudolf the reindeer.

"Wow," Bak said. "It's snowing."

I looked at the little cotton fluffs that were building up along the sidewalk ans swirling erratically past my face.

"Ew." Snow. There went most of my comfortable feelings about this place.

He looked surprised. "Don't you like snow?"

"No. That means it's too cold for rain." Obviously. "I don't have fond memories of it." I murmured more to myself than Bak. When you lived on the streets, snow meant a possible death by hypothermia. I would always barely make it past the winters in England, when I was still just an orphan on the streets. Before Mana and Cross adopted me.

"What do you mean you don't have fond memories of snow?" asked Bak with a confused look on his face. Shoot, I didn't think he'd heard me. I hurriedly though of something to tell him.

"When I was small I used to be super clumsy and fall and land face first into the snow a lot." I quickly explained.

"Aren't you still clumsy now?" he asked teasingly.

"Fine, you caught me. I still fall face first in the snow." I answered laughing.

Bak soon laughed with me, making my laugh seem more like giggling in comparison. And then a big, squishy ball of dripping snow smacked into the back of Bak's head. We both turned to see where it came from. I had my suspicions about Johnny, who was walking away, his back toward us – in the wrong direction to his next class. Bak apparently had the same notion. He bent over and began scraping together a pile of the white mush.

"I'll see you at lunch, ok?" I kept walking as I spoke. "Once people start throwing wet stuff, I go inside."

He just nodded, his eyes on Johnny's retreating figure.

Throughout the morning, everyone chattered excitedly about the snow; apparently it was the first snow fall of the new year. I kept my mouth shut. Sure it was drier than rain – until it melted in your socks.

I walked alertly to the cafeteria with Chaoji after Spanish. Mush balls were flying everywhere. I kept my binder in my hands, ready to use it as a shield if necessary. Chaoji thought I was hilarious, but something in my expression must have kept him from lobbing a snowball at me himself.

Bak caught up to us as we walked in the doors, laughing, with ice melting on the spikes of his hair. He and Chaoji were talking animatedly about the snow fight as we got in line to get our food. I glanced at the table in the corner out of habit. And then I froze where I stood. There were five people at the table.

Chaoji pulled on my arm.

"Hello? Allen sweety? What do you want?" asked Jerry but I wasn't paying much attention to him.

I looked down; my ears were hot. I had no reason to feel self-conscious, I reminded myself. I hadn't done anything wrong.

"What's with Allen?" Back asked Chaoji.

"Nothing," I answered. "I'll just get a soda today." I caught grabbed a bottle of coke, ignoring their shocked looks.

"Aren't you hungry? Are you ok sweety?" Jerry asked concerned.

"Actually, I feel a little sick," I said, my eyes still on the floor.

I waited for Bak and Chaoji to get their food , and then followed them to a table, my eyes on my feet the whole time.

I sipped my soda slowly, my stomach churning. Twice Bak asked, with unnecessary concern, how I was feeling. I told him it was nothing, but I was wondering if I _should _play it up and escape to the nurse's office for the next hour.

Ridiculous. I shouldn't have to run away.

I decided to permit myself one glance at the Lee family's table. If he was glaring at me, I would skip Biology, like the coward I was.

I kept my head down and glanced up under my lashes. None of them were looking this way. I lifted my head a little.

They were laughing. Kanda, Suman, and Marie all had their hair entirely saturated with melting snow. Miranda and Lenalee were leaning away as Suman shook his dripping hair toward them. They were enjoying the snowy day, just like everyone else – only they looked more like a scene from a movie than the rest of us.

But, aside from the laughter and playfulness, there was something different, and I couldn't pinpoint what the difference was. I examined Kanda the most carefully. His skin was less pale, I decided – flushed from the snow fight maybe – the circles under his eyes much less noticeable. But there was something more. I pondered, staring, trying to isolate the change.

"Allen, what are you staring at?" Chaoji intruded, his eyes following my stare.

At that precise moment, his eyes flashed over to meet mine.

I dropped my head, letting my slightly long hair fall to conceal my face. I was sure, though, in the instant our eyes met, that he didn't look as harsh or unfriendly as he had the last time I'd seen him. He looked merely annoyed again, unsatisfied in some way.

"Kanda Lee is staring at you," Chaoji giggled in my ear.

"He doesn't look mad, does he?" I couldn't help asking.

"You're going to have to be more specific since he always looks mad and grumpy." stated Chaoji.

"I mean like really angry, about to tear your head of kind of angry." I explained.

"No," he said, sounding confused by my question. "Should he be?"

"I don't think he likes me," I confided. I still felt queasy. I put my head down on my arms.

"The Lee's don't like anyone...well, they don't notice anyone enough to like them. But he's still staring at you."

"Stop looking at him." I hissed.

He snickered, but he looked away. I raised my head enough to make sure that he did, contemplating violence if he resisted.

Bak interrupted us then – he was planning an epic battle of the blizzard in the parking lot after school and wanted us to join. Chaoji agreed enthusiastically. The way he looked at Bak left little doubt that he would be up for anything he suggested. I kept silent. I would have to hide in the gym until the parking lot cleared.

For the rest of the lunch hour I very carefully kept my eyes at my own table. I decide to honor the bargain I'd made with myself. Since he didn't look as angry as he did in the first day, I would go to Biology. My stomach did frightened little flips at the thought of sitting next to him again.

I didn't really want to walk to class with Bak as usual – he seemed to be a popular target for the snowball snipers – but when we went tot eh door, everyone besides me groaned in unison. It was raining, washing all traces of the snow away in clear, icy ribbons down the side of the walkway. I pulled my hood up, secretly pleased. I would be free to go straight home after gym.

Bak kept up a string of complaints on the way to building four.

Once inside the classroom, I saw with relief that my table was still empty. was walking around the room, distributing one microscope and box of slides to each table. Class didn't start for a few minutes, and the room buzzed with conversation. I kept my eyes away from the door, doodling idly on the cover of my notebook.

I heard very clearly when the chair next tome me move, but my eyes stayed very carefully focused on the pattern I was drawing.

"Hello." said a quiet, musical voice.

I looked up, stunned that he was speaking with me. He was sitting as far away form me as the desk allowed,but his chair was angled toward me. His hair was dripping wet, and coming slightly loose from his ponytail – even so, he looked like he'd just finished shooting a commercial for hair gel. His dazzling face was calm, open, a slight smirk on his flawless lips. But his eyes were careful.

"My name is Kanda Lee," he continued. "I didn't have a chance to introduce myself last week. You must be Allen Marian Walker."

My mind was spinning with confusion. Had I made up the whole thing? He was perfectly polite now, though something seemed a bit off. I had to speak; he was waiting. But I couldn't think of anything conventional to say.

"H-how do you know my name?" I stammered.

He laughed a soft, enchanting laugh...Oh, god did I just call his laugh enchanting? I must be loosing it.

"Oh, I think everyone know your name. The whole town's been waiting for you to arrive."

I grimace. I new it was something like that.

"No," I persisted stupidly. "I meant, why did you call me Allen?"

He seemed amused. "Would you rather I call you Alleyne? It seems a bit girly,but if that's what you prefer." he said with a taunting smirk. So much for being polite, the jerk.

"No, I like Allen," I said calmly, as to not he baited by him. "But I think Cross – I mean my dad – must call me Alleyne behind my back –" or stupid apprentice, but I kept that to myself "that's what everyone here seems to know me as," I tried to explain, feeling like an utter moron.

"Oh." He let it drop. I looked away awkwardly.

Thankfully, Mr. Banner started class at that moment. I tried to concentrate as he explained the lab we would be doing today. The slides in the box were out of order. Working as lab partners, we had to separate the slides of onion root tip cells into the phases of mitosis they represented and label them accordingly. We weren't suppose to use our books. In twenty minutes, he would be coming around to see who had I right.

"Get started," He commanded.

"Ladies first, partner?" Kanda asked. I looked up, to retort to his insulting comment, to see him smirking in a way that took my breath away. He looked so enticing that I could only stare at him like an idiot.

"Or I could start, if you wish." The smirk faded, allowing me to refill my lungs with air. I felt so stupid, he must obviously be wondering if I was mentally competent. I decided to scavenge whatever dignity I had left.

"No," I said, withholding a blush. "I'll go ahead."

I was showing off, just a little. I'd already done this lab, and I knew what I was looking for. It should be easy. I snapped the first slide into place under the microscope and adjusted it quickly to the 40X objective. I studied the slide briefly.

My assessment was confident. "Prophase."

"Do you mind if I look?" he asked as I began to remove the slide. His hand caught my left hand,to stop me, as he asked. His fingers were ice-cold, I could feel it even through my glove, it was like he'd been holding them in a snowdrift before class. But that wasn't why jerked my hand away so quickly. Part of it was fear that he may be able to feel the texture of my deformed hand through the glove, but that was only a small part. When he touched me, it stung my hand as if an electric current had passed through us.

"Sorry," he muttered, pulling his hand back immediately. However, he continued to reach for the microscope. I watched him, still staggered, as he examined the slide for an even shorter time than I had.

"Prophase," he agreed, writing it neatly in the first space on our worksheet. He swiftly switched out the first slide for the second, and then glanced at it cursorily.

"Anaphase," he murmured, writing it down as he spoke.

I kept my voice indifferent. "May I?"

"What? Don't trust me Moyashi?" He said as he smirked arrogantly and pushed the microscope to me.

I looked into the eyepiece eagerly, hoping to wipe that smirk of his face, only to be disappointed. Damn it, he was right.

"Slide three?" I held my hand without looking at him, not wanting to see that smirk.

He handed it to me; it seemed like he was being careful not to touch my skin again.

I took the most fleeting look I could manage.

"Interphase." I passed him the microscope before he could ask for it. He took a swift peek, and then wrote it down. I would have written it while he looked, but his clear, elegant script intimidated me.I didn't want to spoil the page with my clumsy scrawl.

We were finished before anyone else was close. I could see Mike and his partner comparing two slides again and again, she seemed to be yelling at him and calling him 'Baka-Bak', I wonder what it meant. I also wondered what that word Kanda called me meant, what was it again? Moyashi?

With the work done, it left me with nothing to do but try not to look at him...unsuccessfully. I glanced up, and he was staring at me, that same look of frustration in his eyes. I tried not to get sucked in by his eyes again and failed, but that was when I identified that subtle difference in his face

"Did you get contacts?" I blurted out unthinkingly.

He seemed puzzled by my unexpected question. "No."

"Oh," I mumbled. "I thought there was something different about your eyes."

He shrugged, and looked away.

In fact, I was sure there was something different. I vividly remembered the flat black color of his eyes the last time he'd glanced, or should I say _glared_, at me – the color was striking against the background of his pale skin and his dark blue hair. *Today, his eyes were a completely different color: a strange cobalt blue hue, darker than sapphire, but with the same jewel like gleam to them. I didn't understand how that was possible, unless he was lying for some reason about the contact. Or maybe Forks was making me crazy in the literal sense of the word.

I looked down. His hands were clenched into hard fists again.

Mr. Banner came to our table then, to see why we weren't working. He looked over our shoulders to glance at the complete lab, and then more intently to check the answers.

"So, Kanda, didn't think Alleyne should get a chance with the microscope?" asked.

"Allen," Kanda corrected. " Actually, he identified three of the five."

Mr. Banner looked at me now; his expression was skeptical.

"Have you done this lab before?" he asked.

I smiled sheepishly. "Not with onion root."

"Whitefish blastula?"

"Yes."

Mr. Banner nodded. "Were you in an advanced placement program in Phoenix?"

"Yes."

"Well," he said after a moment, "I guess it's good you two are lab partners." He mumbled something else as he walked away. After he left, I began doodling in my notebook.

"It's too bad about the snow, isn't it?" Kanda asked. I had the feeling that he was forcing himself to make small talk with me. Paranoia swept over me again. It was like he heard my conversation with Chaoji at lunch and was trying to prove me wrong.

"Not really," I answered honestly, what would I win from lying? I was still trying to dislodge the stupid feeling of suspicion, and I couldn't concentrate.

"You don't like the snow." It wasn't a question.

"Or the cold."

"Forks must be a difficult place for you to live," he mused.

"You have no idea," I muttered darkly.

He looked fascinated by what I said, for some reason I couldn't imagine. His face was such a distraction that I tried not to look at any more than courtesy absolutely demanded.

"Why did you come here, then?"

No one had asked me that – not straight out like he did, demanding.

"It's complicated."

"I think I can keep up," he pressed.

I passed for a long moment, and then made the mistake of meeting his gaze. His dark sapphire eyes were glaring but I could feel no malice directed at me, it confused me and I answered without thinking.

"My father, Mana, got remarried," I said.

"That doesn't sound so complex," he disagreed. "When did that happen?"

"Last September." My voice sounded sad, and I scolded myself. I should be happy Mana got remarried.

"And you don't like him," Kanda surmised, his tone neutral.

"No, Phil is fine. Too young, maybe, but nice enough."

"Why didn't you stay with them?"

I couldn't fathom his interest, but he continued to glare at me with penetrating eyes, as if my life's story was somehow vitally important.

"Phil travels a lot. He plays ball for a living." I smiled.

"Have I heard of him?" He asked, smirking in response.

"Probably not. He doesn't play _well. _Strictly minor league. He moves around a lot."

"And your father sent you here so that he could travel with him." He said it as an assumption again, not a question.

My chin raised a fraction. "No, he did not send me here. I sent myself."

His eyebrows knit together. "I don't understand," he admitted, and he seemed unnecessarily frustrated by that fact.

I sighed. Why was I explaining this to him of all people? He continued to glare at me with obvious curiosity.

"He stayed with me at first, but he missed him. It made him unhappy...so I decided it was time to spend some quality time with Cross." My voice was glum by the time I finished.

"But now you're unhappy," he pointed out.

"And?" I challenged.

"That doesn't seem fair." He shrugged, but his eyes were still intense.

I laughed without humor. "Hasn't anyone ever told you? Life isn't fair."

"I believe I _have_ heard that somewhere before," he agreed dryly.

"So that's all," I insisted, wondering why he was still glaring at me that way.

His gaze became appraising. "You put on a good show," he said slowly. "But I'd be willing to bet that you're suffering more than you let anyone else see."

I grimaced at him, resisting the impulse to stick out my tongue like a five-year old, and looked away. In truth I was shocked he managed to find out that out, since when had my feeling become easily to read? Was I loosing my touch in hiding my these sort of things? I blame Forks, I swear this town lowers all your skills by at _least_ forty percent.

"Am I wrong?"

I tried to ignore him.

"I didn't think so," he murmured smugly.

"Why does it matter to _you?_" I asked, irritated. I kept my eyes away, watching the teacher make his rounds.

"That's a very good question," he muttered, so quickly that I wondered if he was talking to himself. However, after a few seconds of silence, I decided that was the only answer I was going to get.

I sighed, scowling at the blackboard.

"Am I annoying you, Moyashi?" He asked. He sounded amused.

Again with that word, what did it mean?

I glanced at him without thinking... and told the truth again. "Not exactly. I'm more annoyed at myself. I'm usually not that easy to read." I frowned.

"You're not, I find you very difficult to read." Despite everything that I'd said and he guessed, he sounded like he meant it.

"You must be a good reader then," I replied.

"Usually." He smirked widely, flashing a set of perfect, ultra-white teeth.

called the class to order then, and I turned with relief to listen. I was in disbelief that I'd just explained my dreary reason for coming to Forks to this bizarre, beautiful boy who may or may not despise me. He'd seemed engrossed in our conversation, but now I could see from the corner of my eye, that he was leaning away from me again, his hands gripping the edge of the table with unmistakable tension.

I tried to appear attentive as illustrated, with transparencies on the overhead projector, what I had seen without difficulty through the microscope. But my thoughts were unmanageable.

When the bell finally rang, Kanda rushed as swiftly and as gracefully from the room as he had last Monday. And, like last Monday, I stared after him in amazement.

Bak skipped quickly to my side and picked up my books for me. I imagined with dog ears and a matching tail.

"That was awful," he groaned. "My lab partner keep yelling at me to work faster, but they looked the same! You're lucky you had Lee for a partner."

"I didn't have any trouble with it," I said, stung by his assumption. I regretted the snub instantly. "I've done the lab before, though," I added before he could get his feelings hurt.

"Well, I wish I had done it before too, that way I wouldn't get yelled at by Fou."

"So Fou is her name, I heard her calling you Baka-Bak. What does that mean? Is it chinese?" I asked with slight curiosity. His face was overcome with a blush as I asked.

"So you heard that?" I nodded. "It's Japanese, it means stupid Bak," he explained while avoiding my eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. You weren't the one insulting me." He quickly said.

"So you know japanese? I though you were chinese?"

"I am, I used to live in Hong Kong which is close to Japan. People there tend to learn both languages, I did."

"That's pretty neat, knowing three languages. I only know english."

"I can teach you if you'd like?" offered Bak with a hopeful expression. Too bad I would have to let him down.

"Thanks for the offer but I don't have the time for you to teach me. After school I have chores to do and there is also the job at your parents sporting goods store. I'm busy at it is." I replied.

"Oh that's too bad. Well if you did have the time which language would you have liked to learn?" he asked curiously.

I gave it some thought. Both chinese and japanese were difficult languages to learn and both seemed equally as interesting, it would be hard to pick which I would like to learn. Suddenly Kanda flashed into my mind.

"_Am I annoying you, Moyashi?"_

"Hey Bak, what does _Moyashi _mean?" I asked. He seemed confused by my random question but answered none the less.

"It means beansprout. Why do you ask?"

I stopped in my tracks. Beansprout? Kanda was calling me Beansprout? That cocky, moronic, egotistical, bastard of a man was calling me short! I may be small but I was still growing dammit! I continued walking, ignoring the stare Bak and some other people were directing at me. It wasn't till we reached the gym that I decided to answer Bak's previous question.

"If I had to chose a language to learn I would choose japanese." I said in a voice of indifference as we entered the gymnasium.

I couldn't concentrate much on today's P.E. due Kanda remark. Luckily, Bak was on my team today. He chivalrously covered my position as well as his own, so my woolgathering was only interrupted when it was my turn to serve; my team ducked warily out of the way every time I was up.

The rain was just a mist as I walked to the parking lot, but I was happier when I was in the dry cab. I got the heater running, for once not caring about the mind-numbing roar of the engine. I unzipped my jacket, put the hood down,and fluffed my damp hair out so the heater could dry it on the way home.

I looked around me to make sure it was clear. That's when I noticed the still, white figure. Kanda Lee was leaning against the front door of the Volvo, three cars down from me, and staring intently in my direction. I gave him a small glare and looked away, I quickly threw the truck into reverse and almost hit a rusty Toyota Corolla in my haste. Lucky for me, I stomped on the brake in time. It was just the sort of car that my truck would make scrap metal of, and I did not need another debt to owe. I took a deep breath, still looking out the other side of my car, and cautiously pulled out again, with greater success. I stared ahead as I passed the Volvo, but from a peripheral peek, I would swear I saw him laughing.

* * *

**Ok, I'm sorry I have not updated since like forever. I had some family issues, college issues, and life issues over all to deal with and I had no time or motivation to type this up. It's a lousy excuse but it's all I got. I'm sorry. It's a new year and I promised myself to finish everything I have started, like this story. Thanks to all of you that have reviewed because it really motivated me to keep going with this story, I was close to just posting an author note saying " Sorry, but this story will be discontinued." How horrible would that have been? I will try my best to type more frequently and get the chapters to you quicker than this one. Half a year...man thats a record slow. I promise the next chapter will not take as long to come up as this one. Once again, thanks for your support and see you next chapter! **

***Kanda's eyes: I decided that Kanda's as well as any vampire that does not drink human blood will still have their original eye color if they are not hungry, if they are then it get darker like in the Twilight books. As for does that do drink blood their eyes will be red.**

**Remember, reviews are love! So please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Neko: "Hello! I'm here like I promised. I put this thing up faster than the last one so I'm very proud of myself."**

**Kanda: "Of course you put this one up faster, the last one took half a year! How about you post these up faster!"**

**Neko: "Don't yell at me! I already explained why I took so long!"(Hides behind Allen) "Allen-chan, tell Kanda to stop reprimanding me!"**

**Allen: "Its just Allen! Neko, I'm afraid that I will have to agree with Bakanda on this one. You really need to put these up more frequently and...Neko? Are you crying?" (Allen asks worriedly.)**

**Neko: "N-No!" (Quickly wipes her eyes)**

**Kanda: "Great job Moyashi, you made a girl cry."**

**Allen: "You had a part in it too Bakanda!" (Goes to comfort Neko) "It's not your fault, don't cry."**

**Neko: "Really?"**

**Allen: "Yes."**

**Neko: "How can I know you aren't lying?"**

**Allen: "Bakanda and I will do anything to prove we aren't lying."**

**Kanda: " The hell! Why so I have to do anything?"**

**Allen: "Because you are the one who started it."**

**Kanda: "Che."**

**Allen: "So what do you say Neko?"**

**Neko: "Ok, then Allen-chan I want you to make a bet with me."**

**Allen: "A bet?"**

**Neku: "Uh-huh. I bet that you will love Kanda and have hot smex with him by the end of the story."**

**Allen: "W-What?" (Blushes so red it could put a tomato to shame)**

**Neko: "And Kanda, you will have to record and picture the whole thing and make separate copies for me when it happens."**

**Kanda: "Are you high? How can we know you wont just write it in your twisted story?"**

**Neko: "Oh, it won't happen in this story it is rated T after all. Any Twilight fan knows that. I mean, that by the time I finish writing this story you two will be in L-O-V-E!"**

**Allen: "Fine, I take that bet."**

**Kanda: "Moyashi?"**

**Allen: "Face it Kanda, she can't force us to fall for each other so we're safe. Right, Neko?"**

**Neko: "Yup I can't force you."**

**Allen: "See? So we are fine. Neko when I win the bet what do I get?"**

**Neko: "Confident aren't you. If you win the bet I will provide you with a year supply of metarashi dango, and Kanda will get a year supply of soba noodles. Is that ok?"**

**Allen: "YES!" (Eyes sparkle at the prospects of metarashi dango)**

**Kanda: "Fine."**

**Neko: "Great, it's a bet. Now on to the story, Allen-chan take it away!...Allen-chan?" (Turns to see Allen is still in his metarashi dango induced daydreams)**

**Kanda: "Idiot can't do anything. Baka-Neko does not own Twilight or -man."**

* * *

**3. Phenomenon**

When I opened my eyes in the morning, something was different.

It was the light. It was still the gray-green light of a cloudy day in the forest, but it was clearer somehow. I realized there was no fog veiling my window.

I jumped up to look outside, and then groaned in horror.

A fine layer of snow covered the yard, dusted the top of my truck, and whitened the road. But that wasn't the worst part. All the rain from yesterday had frozen – coating the needles on the trees in fantastic, gorgeous patterns, and making the driveway a deadly ice slick. I had enough trouble not falling down when the ground was dry; it might be safer for me to go back to bed now.

As I was heading back to bed I noticed a piece of paper by my door. I picked it up and read it.

_"Stupid Apprentice, don't you dare get me in trouble with Mana for letting you skip school, as well as letting my hard work go to waste. So get up and get your ass out the door!" – Cross_

I crumpled the paper in my hand and slowly breathed in and out for a few seconds. As soon as I was calm, and sure that I would not punch the day lights out of Cross as soon as I saw him, I thought he had a point. It would be of no use to skip school, for it would only make Mana worry that I wasn't fitting in or something, plus Cross would probably kill me for not obeying his orders. So with that in mind I got up and got ready for a horrible day in the snow. I downed two pants, two shirts, sweater, and pair of snow boots and left my room.

Apparently Cross had left for work before I got downstairs. In a lot of ways, living with Cross was like having my own place, bills included, and I found myself reveling in the aloneness instead of being lonely.

I threw down a large bowl of cereal and a carton of orange juice from the fridge. I felt excited to go to school and that scared me, especially since only ten minutes ago I was planning on skipping till a though of something came to mind other than Cross' note. I knew it wasn't the stimulating learning environment I was anticipating, or seeing my new set of friends. If I was being honest with myself, I knew I was eager to get to school because I would see Kanda Lee. And that was very, very stupid.

I should be avoiding him entirely after my brainless and embarrassing babbling yesterday. And I was suspicious of him; why would he lie about his eyes? I was still frightened of the constant hostility I felt emanating from him, and I was tongue-tied whenever I pictured his perfect face. I was well aware that my league and his league were like a square and a sphere that did not touch. Heck, I wasn't even sure if he even played on the team I was on. So I shouldn't be at all anxious to see him today.

It took every ounce of my concentration to make it down the icy brick driveway alive. I almost lost my balance when I finally got to my truck, but managed to cling to the side mirror and save myself. Clearly, today was going to be nightmarish.

Driving to school, I distracted myself from my fear of falling and my unwanted speculations about Kanda Lee by thinking about Bak and Johnny, and the obvious difference in how boys responded to me here. I was sure I looked exactly the same as I had in London. Maybe it was just that the boys back home had watched me pass slowly through all the awkward phases of adolescence and still though of me that way. Perhaps it was because I was a novelty here, where novelties were so few and far between that even my abnormalities were overlooked. Possibly my crippling clumsiness was seen as endearing rather than pathetic, casting me of as a "damsel in distress". Whatever the reason, Bak's puppy dog behavior and Johnny apparent rivalry with him were getting on my nerves. I wasn't sure if I didn't prefer being ignored.

My truck seemed to have no problem with the black ice that covered the roads. I drove very slowly, though, not wanting to carve a path of destruction though Main Street.

When I got out of my truck at school, I saw why I'd had so little trouble. Something silver caught my eye, and I walked to the back of the truck – carefully holding the side for support – to examine my tires. There were thin chains crisscrossed in diamond shapes around them. So this was what he meant by hard work. Cross had gotten up who knows how early to put snow chains on my truck. My throat suddenly felt tight. I wasn't used to being taken care of, if anything it was the other way around, and Cross' unspoken concern caught me by surprise.

I was standing by the back corner of the truck, struggling to fight back the sudden wave of emotion the snow chain had brought on, when I heard an odd sound.

It was a high-pitched screech, and it was fast becoming painfully loud. I looked up, startled.

I saw several things simultaneously. Nothing was moving in slow motion, the way it does in the movies. Instead, the adrenaline rush seemed to make my brain work much faster, and I was able to absorb in clear detail several things at once.

Kanda Lee was standing four cars down from me, staring at me in horror. His face stood out from a sea of faces, all frozen in the same mask of shock. But of more immediate importance was the dark blue van that was skidding, tires locked and squealing against the brakes, spinning wildly across the ice of the parking lot. It was going to hit the back corner of my truck, and I was standing between them. I didn't even have time to close my eyes.

Just before I heard the shattering crunch of the van folding around the truck bed, something hit me, hard, but not from the direction I was expecting. My head cracked against the icy blacktop, and I felt something solid and cold pining me to the ground. I was lying on the on the pavement behind the tan car I'd parked next to. But I didn't have a chance to notice anything else, because the van was still coming. It had curled gratingly around the end of the truck and, still spinning and sliding, was about to colloid with me _again_.

A low oath made me aware that someone was with me, and the voice was impossible not to recognize. Two long, white hands shot out protectively in front of me, and the van shuddered to a stop a foot from my face, the large hands fitting providentially into a deep dent in the side of the van's body.

Then his hands moved so fast they blurred. One was suddenly gripping under the body of the van, and something was dragging me, swinging my legs around like a rag doll's, till they hit the tire of the tan car. A groaning metallic thus hurt my ears, and the van settled, glass popping, onto the asphalt – exactly where, a second ago, my legs had been.

I was absolutely silent for one second before the screaming began. In the abrupt bedlam, I could hear more than one person shouting my name. But more clearly than all the yelling, I could hear Kanda Lee's low, frantic voice in my ear.

"Allen? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." My voice sounded strange. I tried to sit up, and realize he was holding me against the side of his body in an iron grasp.

"Be careful," he warned as I struggled. "I think you hit your head pretty hard."

I became aware of a throbbing ache centered above my left ear.

"Ow," I said, surprised.

"That's what I though, Moyashi." His voice, amazingly, sounded like he was suppressing laughter.

"How in the…" I trailed off; trying to clear my head, get my bearings. "How did you get over here so fast?"

"I was standing right next to you, Moyashi," he said, his tone serious again.

I turned to sit up, and this time he let me, he released his hold around my waist and slid as far from me as he could in the limited space. I looked at his concerned, yet irritated expression and was disoriented again by the force of his sapphire like eyes. What was I asking him?

And then they found us, a crowd of people with tears streaming down their faces, shouting at each other, and shouting at us.

"Don't move," someone instructed.

"Get Daisya out of the van!" someone else shouted.

There was a flurry of activity around us. I tried to get up, but Kanda's cold hand pushed my shoulder down.

"Just stay put for now."

"But it's cold," I complained. It surprised me when he chuckled under his breath. There was an edge to the sound.

"You were over there," I suddenly remembered, and his chuckle stopped short. "You were by your car."

His expression turned hard. "No, I wasn't."

"I saw you." All around us was chaos. I could hear the gruffer voices of the adults arriving on the scene. But I obstinately held on to our argument; I was right, and he was going to admit it.

"Moyashi, I was standing with you, and pulled you out of the way." He unleashed the full, devastating, power of his eyes on me, as if trying to communicate something crucial.

"No," I set my jaw.

The sapphire in his eyes blazed. " Listen to me, Moyashi."

"Why?" I demanded.

"Just do it for now." He ordered, his commanding voice overwhelming.

I could hear the sirens now. "Will you promise to explain everything to me later?"

"Fine," he snapped, abruptly exasperated.

"Fine," I repeated angrily.

It took six EMT's and two teachers – Mr. Varner and Coach Wong – to shift the van far enough away from us to bring the stretchers in. Kanda vehemently refused his, and I tried to do the same, but the traitor told them I'd hit my head and probably had a concussion. I almost died of humiliation when they put on the neck brace. It looked like the entire school was there, watching soberly as they loaded in the back of the ambulance. Kanda got to ride in the front. It was maddening.

To make matter worse, Chief Marian arrived before they could get me safely away.

"Allen!" he yelled in panic when he recognized me on the stretcher.

"I'm completely fine, Cro – Master," I sighed. "There's nothing wrong with me."

He turned to the closest EMT for a second opinion. I tuned him out to consider the jumble of inexplicable images turning chaotically in my head. When they'd lifted me away from the car, I had seen the deep dent in the tan car's bumper – a very distinct dent that fit the contours of Kanda's shoulders…as if he had braced himself against the car with enough force to damage the metal frame….

And then there was his family, looking on from the distance, with expressions that ranged from disapproval to fury but held no hint of concern for their brother's safety.

I tried to think of a logical solution that could explain what I had just seen – a solution that excluded the assumption that I was insane, because I didn't need to add that to my list of "_lovely" _qualities.

Naturally, the ambulance got a police escort to the county hospital. I felt ridiculous the whole time they were unloading me. What made it worse was that Kanda simply glided through the hospital doors under his own power. I grounded my teeth together.

They put me in the emergency room, a long room with a line of beds separated by pastel-pattern curtains. A nurse put a pressure cuff on my arm and a thermometer under my tongue. Since no one bothered pulling the curtain around to give me some privacy, I decided I wasn't obligated to wear the stupid-looking neck brace anymore. When the nurse walked way, I quickly unfastened the Velcro and threw it under the bed.

There was another flurry of hospital personnel, another stretcher brought to the bed next to me. I recognized Daisya from my Government class beneath the bloodstained bandages wrapped tightly around his head. Daisya looked a hundred times worse than I felt. But he was staring anxiously at me.

"Allen, I'm so sorry!"

"I'm fine, Daisya – you look awful, are you all right?"

As we spoke, nurse began unwinding his soiled bandages, exposing a myriad of shadow slices all over his forehead and left cheek.

He ignored me. "I though I was going to kill you! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong…." He winced as one nurse started dabbing at his face.

"Don't worry about it, you're the one that was badly injured. Besides you missed me."

"How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone…."

"Umm…Kanda pulled me out of the way."

He looked confused. "Who?"

"Kanda Lee – he was standing next to me." I'd always had a great poker face and was great at lying; a skill acquired while gambling in bars in order to pay off Master's debts. So I was certain he would fall for it.

"Lee? I didn't see him…wow, it was all so fast, I guess. Is he ok?"

"I think so. He's here somewhere, but they didn't make him use a stretcher."

I knew I wasn't crazy. What had happened? There was no way to explain away what I'd seen.

They wheeled me away then, to X-ray my head. I told them there was nothing wrong, and I was right. Not even a concussion. I asked if I could leave, but the nurse said I had to talk to a doctor first. So, I was trapped in the ER, waiting, harassed by Daisya's constant apologies and promises to make it up to me. No matter how many times I tried to convince him I was fine, he continued to torment himself. Finally, I closed my eyes and ignored him. He kept up a remorseful mumbling.

"Is he sleeping?" a musical voice asked. My eyes flew open.

Kanda was standing at the foot of my bed, smirking. I glared at him. It wasn't easy – it would have been more natural to ogle.

"Hey, Kanda, I'm really sorry –" Daisya began.

Kanda just shook his head.

"No blood, no foul," he said, sporting his usual scowl. He moved to sit on the edge of Daisya's bed, facing me. He looked bored.

"So, what's the verdict?" he asked me.

"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but they won't let me go," I complained. "How come you aren't strapped to a gurney like the rest of us?"

"I have my ways," he answered. " And stop whining, I came to get you out."

Then a doctor walked around the corner, and my mouth fell open. He was young, wore glasses, he had dark purple hair…and he was handsomer than any of those fake, models like doctors I'd seen in TV. He was pale, though, and tired-looking, with circles under his eyes. From Master Cross' description, this had to be Kanda's father.

"So, Miss Marian Walker," Dr. Lee said in a remarkably appealing voice, "how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," I said politely, but hoping it was the last time I had to say it.

He walked to the light board on the wall over my head and turned it on.

"Your X-rays look good," he said. "Does your head hurt? Kanda said you hit it pretty hard."

"It's fine," I repeated with a sigh, throwing a quick scowl toward Kanda.

The doctor's cool fingers probed lightly along my skull. He noticed when I winced.

"Tender?" he asked.

"Not really." I'd have much worse.

I heard a small chuckle, and looked over to see Kanda covering his mouth with one hand and looking at me with a patronizing expression. My eyes narrowed. I turned back to Dr. Lee to see him also staring at his son but with a shocked expression. Kanda noticed it as well since he stopped and turned away with his typical scowl back in place. Dr. Lee then turned back to me, resuming as if nothing had happened.

"Well, your father is in the waiting room—you can go home with him now. But come back if you feel dizzy or have trouble with your eyesight at all."

"Can't I go back to school?" I asked, imagining Master Cross trying to be attentive, I shuddered.

"Maybe you should take it easy today."

I glanced at Kanda. "Does _he _get to go to school?"

"Someone has to spread the news we survived." Kanda said smugly.

"Actually," Dr. Lee corrected, "most of the school seems to be in the waiting room."

"Oh no," I moaned, covering my face with my hands.

Dr. Lee raised his eyebrows. "Do you want to stay?"

"No, no!" I insisted, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and hopping down quickly. Too quickly – I staggered, and Dr. Lee caught me. He looked concern.

"I'm fine," I assured him again. No need to tell him my balance problems had nothing to do with hitting my head.

"Take some Tylenol for the pain," he suggested as he steadied me.

"It doesn't hurt that bad." I insisted.

"It sounds like you were extremely lucky," Dr. Lee said, smiling as he signed my chart with a flourish.

"Lucky Kanda happened to be standing next to me," I amended with a hard glance at the subject of my statement.

"Oh, well, yes," Dr. Lee agreed, suddenly occupied with the papers in front of him. Then he looked away, at Daisya, and walked to the next bed. My poker's intuition flickered; the doctor was in on it.

"I'm afraid that _you'll _have to stay with us just a little bit longer," he said to Daisya, and began checking his cuts.

As soon as the doctor's back was turned, I moved to Kanda's side.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" I hissed under my breath. He took a step back from me, his jaw clenched.

"Your father is waiting for you," he said through his teeth.

I glanced at Dr. Lee and Daisya.

"I'd like to speak with you alone, if you don't mind," I pressed.

He glared, and then turned his back and strode down the long room. I nearly had to run to keep up. As soon as we turned the corner into a short hallway, he spun around to face me.

"What do you want?" he asked, sounding annoyed. His eyes were cold.

His unfriendliness intimidated me. My words came out with less severity than I'd intended. "You owe me an explanation," I reminded him.

"I saved you life – I owe you nothing."

I flinched back from the resentment in his voice. "You promised."

"You hit your head Moyashi, you don't know what you're talking about." His tone was cutting.

My temper flared now, and I glared defiantly at him. "There's nothing wrong with my head!"

He glared back. "What do you want from me?"

"I want to know the truth," I said. "I want to know why I'm lying for you."

"What do you _think _happened?" he snapped.

It came out in a rush.

"All I know is that you weren't anywhere near me – Tokusa didn't see you, either, so don't tell me I hit my head too hard. The van was going to crush us both – and it didn't, and your hand left dents in the side of it – and you left a dent in the other car, and you're not hurt at all – and the van should have smashed my legs, but you were holding it up…" I could hear how crazy it sounded, and I couldn't continue. I was so mad I could feel tears coming; I tried to force them back by grinding my teeth together.

He was staring at me incredulously. But his face was tense, defensive.

"You think I lifted a van off you?" His tone questioned my sanity, but it only made me more suspicious. It was too perfect, like a line delivered by a skilled actor.

I merely nodded once.

"Nobody will believe that, you know." His voice held an edge of derision now. He pretty much admitted it, but I still wanted to know why and how he'd done it. He knew I did.

"I'm not going to tell anyone." I said each word slowly, carefully controlling my anger. I really wouldn't, it wasn't mine to tell.

Surprise flitted across his face. "Then why does it matter?"

"It matters to me," I insisted. "I don't like to lie without reason – so there'd better be a good one if I'm doing it."

"Can't you just thank me and get over it?"

"Thank you." I waited, fuming and expectant.

"You're not going to let it go, are you Moyashi?"

"No."

"In that case…I hope you enjoy disappointment."

We scowled at each other in silence. I was the first to speak, trying to keep myself focused. I was in danger of being distracted by his livid, glorious face. It was like trying to stare down an angel of destruction.

"Why did you even bother?" I asked frigidly.

He paused, and for a brief moment his stunning face was unexpectedly vulnerable.

"I don't know." He whispered.

And then he turned his back on me and walked away.

I was so angry, it took me a few minutes until I could move. When I could walk, I made my way slowly to the exit at the end of the hallway.

The waiting room was more unpleasant than I'd feared. It seemed like every face I knew in Forks was there, staring at me. I couldn't help but to grip my left arm and hide it slightly behind me. Cross rushed to my side; I put up my right hand up.

"There's nothing wrong with me, Master," I assured him sullenly. I was still aggravated, not in the mood for chitchat.

"What did Komui say?"

"He said I was fine and that I could go home." I sighed. Bak, Chaoji, and Johnny were all there, ready to converge on us. "Master, let's go." I urged.

Cross put one arm behind my back, not quite touching me, and led me to the glass doors of the exit. I waved sheepishly at my friends, hoping to convey they didn't need to worry anymore. It was a huge relief – the first time I'd ever felt that way – to get into the cruiser.

We drove in silence. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I barely knew Cross was there. I was positive that Kanda's defensive behavior in the hall was a confirmation of the bizarre things I still could hardly believe I'd witnessed, but how to get him to explain how he did it?

When we got to the house, Cross finally spoke.

"You'll need to call Mana." He said as he turned off the cruiser.

I was appalled. "You told Papa!"

"Yea, and now I'm telling you to call him!" he yelled.

I got out and slammed the cruiser's door a little harder than necessary. I would get it from Cross later, but I was mad enough already and this was some added stress I did not need.

Papa Mana was in hysterics, of course. I had to tell him I felt fine at least thirty times before he finally calmed down. He begged me to come home – forgetting that home was empty at the moment – but his pleas were easier to resist than I though. I was consumed by the mystery Kanda presented. And more than a little obsessed by Bakanda himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I wasn't as eager to escape Forks, as I should be, as any normal, sane person would be.

I decided I might as well go to bed early that night. Cross stayed home tonight, to make sure I was ok and that I wouldn't randomly faint on the floor or something. It was kind of insulting for him to think me so weak. His constant watching of me when he thought I wasn't looking was getting on my nerves. I stopped on my way to grab three Tylenol from the medicine cabinet. They did help and as the pain eased, I drifted to sleep.

That was the first night I dreamed of Kanda Lee.

* * *

**Well, that is it for this chapter. I would like to thank all of you for rooting me on to keep typing this, really thank you! I love you all! Remember, reviews keep me going! It was actually one of my latest reviews that made me finish this chapter! So there is your proof that reviews make this story come faster.**

**PS: I keep noticing grammatical errors whenever I post up these chapters, I would just like to say it is not my fault. They are perfectly grammatical when I type them up but get messed up when I upload them to . No clue why, it just does. If you find any really big errors where you really can't understand what is typed them mention it and I will try and fix it. **

**Well, that is all**

**~sayonara!**


	5. Author Note

READ! VERY IMPORTANT!

Hi, sorry guys this isn't a new chapter. Don't worry I'm still typing it up its just that during the summer I took summer courses in Queens college to get some credits and now I'm back at my normal college upstate. So yea I'm been and still am pretty busy but I will try to get this chapter done and upload it when I'm done with my other responsibilities.

But that isn't all I want to tell you. I would also like to say I put up a poll in my profile page for whether or not Kanda and the rest of the vampires should or should not "glitter" when they get exposed to the sun. I know some people who like and hate that about Edward in the book and I'm personally not a big fan of it either (specially after I saw the movie, it looked like they just glued buckets full of glitter all over his body). But I will type that version if it is the post popular vote. So yea it's up to you to side. Glitter or no glitter? I also posted other possible alternatives as a choice, just check out the poll in my profile and you'll get what I mean.

Hopefully I will get this all typed up and uploaded soon…ish. So just wait and vote on the poll! See you guys soon.

PS: Kanda is ALIVE! Thank you Katsura Hoshino ! Check out the latest chapter of -man!


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